A    H1STOR.Y  OF 


KA  N  S 


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A 


A  HISTORY  OF  KANSAS 

BY 

ANNA  E.  ARNOLD 

AUTHOR  OF  CIVICS  AND  CITIZENSHIP 


PUBLISHED  BY 
THE  STATE  OF  KANSAS 

W.  R.  SMITH,  STATE  PRINTER 

TOPEKA,  1915 


COPYRIGHTED.  1914.  BY   ANNA   E,  ARNO<_0 
ALL    RIGHTS   RESERVED 


PREFACE 

No  State  has  a  history  better  calculated  to  inspire 
patriotism  in  its  people  than  has  Kansas.  In  this  fact 
lies  the  greatest  reason  for  teaching  Kansas  History  in 
the  schools.  A  knowledge  of  the  difficulties  that  have 
been  met  and  conquered  in  building  the  State  will  create 
in  the  minds  of  the  boys  and  girls  a  greater  respect  for 
the  sturdy  qualities  of  the  pioneers,  it  will  give  them  a 
wholesome  sense  of  the  great  cost  at  which  the  ease  and 
comfort  of  to-day  have  been  purchased,  it  will  stimulate 
in  them  a  desire  to  live  up  to  the  past. 

If  the  study  of  Kansas  History  is  to  accomplish  these 
results,  the  subject  must  be  presented  in  such  a  way  as 
to  arouse  the  interest  of  the  pupils.  They  must  feel  its 
reality.    They  must  catch  Its  spirit. 

With  the  hope  of  fulfilling  in  some  measure  these  re- 
quirements, this  book  has  been  prepared  with  the  fol- 
lowing aims  constantly  in  mind:  to  make  it,  as  nearly 
as  possible,  a  narrative;  to  select  from  the  wealth  of  mate- 
rial at  hand  such  subject  matter  as  is  within  the  compre- 
hension of  children,  eliminating  such  matter  as  can  be 
fully  understood  and  appreciated  only  by  mature  minds; 
to  present  the  general  movement  of  the  State's  progress 
rather  than  a  mass  of  unrelated  facts.  Only  so  much 
detail  has  been  used  as  is  necessary  to  a  clear  understand- 
ing of  events.  The  purpose  has  not  been  to  chronicle  a 
multitude  of  events,  but  rather  to  show  forth  what  man- 
ner of  men  and  women  were  the  builders  of  our  State, 

•      (5) 


»  » 


^'^  Hr^:  %::':' 


6  *     a'  HiS'i^OfeV   of   KANSAS 

what  motives  actuated  them,  what  conditions  surrounded 
them,  how  they  lived,  and  what  they  accomplished. 

An  effort  has  been  made  to  give  the  pupils  a  general 
view  of  the  State's  history  as  a  whole,  to  give  them  a 
framework  on  which  to  build  their  later  knowledge,  and 
to  leave  them  with  a  desire  to  learn  more  of  Kansas 
history. 

Anna  E.  Arnold. 


CONTENTS 

Chapter  page 

I.    The  Beginning  of  Kansas  History 9 

11.  Kansas  Becomes  A  Part  OF  THE  United  States  .. .     16 

III.  Exploration  of  the   Kansas   Country   by   the 

United  States 20 

rv.  Kansas  as  a  Pathway 29 

V.  Kansas  as  an  Indian  Country 46 

VI.  Kansas  Organized  as  a  Territory 57 

VII.  The  Coming  of  the  Settlers 63 

VIII.  The  First  Territorial  Government 73 

IX.  Rival  Governments  in  Kansas 79 

X.  The  Period  of  Violence 85 

XI.  The  Period  of  Poutical  Contests 95 

XII.  Pioneer  Life 103 

XIII.  Kansas  in  the  Civil  War HI 

XIV.  The  Half  Century  Since  the  Civil  War 117 

XV.  The  Industries  of  Kansas 141 

XVI.    The  Railroads  of  Kansas 172 

XVII.    Education  in  Kansas 183 

XVIII.     Kansas  Memorials 201 

XIX.    The  Kansas  Spirit 211 

Appendix 215 

(7) 


A   HISTORY  OF  KANSAS 


QUIVIRA— KANSAS 

In  that  half-forgotten  era, 
With  the  avarice  of  old, 
Seeking  cities  he  was  told 
Had  been  paved  with  yellow  gold, 

In  the  kingdom  of  Quivira — 

Came  the  restless  Coronado 
To  the  open  Kansas  plain, 
With  his  knights  from  sunny  Spain; 
In  an  effort  that,  though  vain, 

Thrilled  with  boldness  and  bravado. 

League  by  league,  in  aimless  marching, 
Knowing  scarcely  where  or  why. 
Crossed  they  uplands  drear  and  dry. 
That  an  unprotected  sky 

Had  for  centuries  been  parching. 

But  their  expectations,  eager. 
Found,  instead  of  fruitful  lands. 
Shallow  streams  and  shifting  sands, 
Where  the  buffalo  in  bands 

Roamed  o'er  deserts  dry  and  meager. 

Back  to  the  scenes  more  trite,  yet  tragic, 
Marched  the  knights  with  armor'd  steeds; 
Not  for  them  the  quiet  deeds; 
Not  for  them  to  sow  the  seeds 

From  which  empires  grow  like  magic. 

Thus  Quivira  was  forsaken; 
'And  the  world  forgot  the  place 
Through  the  lapse  of  time  and  space. 
Then  the  blue-eyed  Saxon  race 
Came  and  bade  the  desert  waken. 

— Eugene  Ware. 


A  HISTORY  OF  KANSAS 


CHAPTER  I 
THE  BEGINNING  OF  KANSAS  fflSTORY 

More  than  four  centuries  have  passed  since  Colum- 
bus discovered  America.  During  that  time  the  hunting 
ground  of  three  hundred  thousand  Indi- 
ans has  become  the  United  States  with  its 
ninety-two  million  civilized  people.  In  the  center  of 
this  great  nation,  which  occupies  nearly  half  the  area  of 
the  continent,  lies  Kansas,  a  rectangle  four  hundred 
miles  long  and  two  hundred  miles  wide. 

Kansas  is  a  part  of  the  great  plain  that  slopes  gradually 
from  the  foothills  of  the  Rocky  Mountains  to  the  Mis- 
sissippi River.  Its  surface,  cut  by  many  eastward-flowing 
streams,  lies  level  in  the  west  but  in  the  east  curves  into 
countless  hills  and  valleys. 

On  these  broad  prairies  to-day  are  thousands  of  cattle, 
and  great  fields  of  com,  wheat,  and  alfalfa.  Towns  and 
cities  are  scattered  over  the  State,  and  the  country 
between  is  dotted  with  the  homes  of  farmers.  There 
are  mines,  factories,  churches,  schools,  and  colleges. 
Uniting  all  are  miles  and  miles  of  railroad.  Kansas  is  now 
the  home  of  more  than  a  million  and  a  half  of  busy, 
prosperous  people.  But  it  was  not  always  so;  these 
prairies  were  once  used  only  by  the  Indian  and  the  buffalo. 
If  we  are  to  understand  how  this  change  has  come  about 

(9) 


10  A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 

we  must  begin  with  the  coming  of  the  first  white  men 
to  America. 

At  that  time  Spain  was  the  most  powerful  nation  of 
Europe,  and  since  she  had  furnished  the  funds  for  the 
The  first  voyage  of  Columbus  she  claimed  the  first 

white  men  right  to  America  and  became  the  pioneer 

in  Kansas  -^    ^^^  exploration    of    the  New  World. 

The  Spaniards  first  explored  the  Gulf  of  Mexico  and 
Florida,  discovered  the  Pacific  Ocean  and  the  Mississippi 
River,  and  were  the  first  to  sail  around  the  world.  In 
1519  Cortez,  a  Spaniard,  landed  on  the  present  site  of 
Vera  Cruz  and  marched  into  the  heart  of  Mexico,  the 
home  of  the  Aztec  Indians.  He  made  himself  master 
of  that  great  region  and  called  it  New  Spain.  All  of 
these  expeditions  were  too  far  south  to  reach  what  is 
now  Kansas,  but  only  a  few  more  years  were  to  pass  be- 
fore this  far-off  country  was  to  be  explored  by  the  adven- 
turous Spaniards,  the  first  white  men  to  set  foot  on 
Kansas  soil. 

In  1528  Narvaez,  a  Spaniard,  led  an  exploring  expedi- 
tion westward  from  Florida  along  the  Gulf  of  Mexico. 

Through  various  misfortunes  and  hard- 
de  Va^a  ships  nearly  all  of  the  party  i)erished.   One 

of  the  commanders,  Cabeza  de  Vaca,  and 
three  of  his  men  were  taken  prisoners  by  the  Indians. 
After  being  held  in  captivity  nearly  six  years  they 
succeeded  in  making  their  escape.  They  fled  westward, 
and  after  an  adventurous  journey  of  nearly  two  years 
reached  a  Spanish  settlement  near  the  western  coast  of 
New  Spain.  The  exact  route  followed  by  Cabeza  de  Vaca 
and  his  companions  can  never  be  known,  but  his  accounts 
of  their  wanderings  were  largely  the  cause  of  the  expedition 
of  Coronado,  who  was  the  first  white  man  known  with 
certainty  to  have  traveled  across  what  is  now  Kansas. 


THE   BEGINNING  OF    KANSAS   HISTORY  11 

The  chief  purpose  of  all  the  Spanish  explorers  was  to 
search  for  wealth.     Cortez  is  said  to  have  made  this 

remark  to  the  Indians:  *'We  Spaniards 
s?IS?a?df  '*"*      are  troubled  with  a  disease  of  the  heart 

for  which  we  find  gold,  and  gold  only,  a 
specific  remedy."  The  hope  of  finding  gold  and  precious 
stones  lying  about  like  pebbles  lured  many  Spaniards 
into  enterprises  filled  with  terrible  hardships.  Reports  of 
great  cities  of  untold  wealth  to  the  northward,  the  "Seven 
Cities  of  Cibola,"  as  they  were  called,  had  reached  New 
Spain  at  various  times,  and  when  Cabeza  de  Vaca  told 
similar  tales  that  he  had  heard  from  the  Indians  it  stirred 
the  Spaniards  to  explore  the  region. 

Great  preparation  was  made  for  an  expedition.     An 
army  of  three  hundred   Spaniards  and   eight  hundred 

friendly  Indians  was  gathered  and  placed 

under  the  command  of  Coronado.  This 
was  a  large  army  for  those  times  and  the  burden  of  fur- 
nishing it  with  arms  and  supplies  fell  heavily  on  New 
Spain.  But  so  hopeful  were  the  people  of  the  success  of 
the  expedition  that  no  sacrifice  seemed  too  great.  In 
the  spring  of  1540  the  long  march  into  imexplored 
country  began. 

After  months  of  travel  in  a  northerly  and  then  in  a 
northeasterly  direction,  Coronado  and  his  army  reached 

the  province  of  Cibola,  which  was  prob- 
QuIvi'rT''**  ^*'      ably  i^  ^^e  western  part  of  what  is  now 

New  Mexico,  and  the  "Seven  Cities" 
proved  to  be  ordinary  adobe  Indian  villages.  They  took 
possession  of  the  Indian  supplies  and  spent  the  winter  in 
the  villages.  The  Indians,  anxious  to  get  rid  of  their  un- 
welcome visitors,  persuaded  a  Quivira  Indian,  whom 
they  held  as  a  prisoner,  to  tell  the  Spaniards  tales  of  the 
wonderful  land  of  Quivira  in  order  to  lead  them  off  into 


12 


A   HISTORY   OF   KANSAS 


the  wilaerness  where  they  would  die  from  lack  of  food 
and  water.  Coronado  and  his  men  listened  to  this  Indian, 
whom  they  called  ''Turk,"  and  followed  him  as  a  guide 
for  many  days.  He  led  them  steadily  toward  the  east, 
and  after  a  time  they  became  convinced  that  they  were 
being  deceived  and  made  him  confess  that  Quivira  was  far 
to  the  northward.  They  had  been  only  too  willing  to 
listen  to  Turk's  stories,  but  when  they  learned  that  he  had 
misled  them  they  put  him  to  death.  Supplies  were  now 
low  and  Coronado  sent  back  the  main  body  of  the  army, 
which  was  composed  of  footmen,  and  with  thirty  horse- 
men started  northward. 


: ;    , ^ 

^.                 i. 

'th 

\C'^CuH««                 7       GULF  OF 

O^       A 

MEXICO 

■4^            l\Compo5tela      V 

V \ 

\^^  City  of  Mexico 

^J 

The  Journeys  of  Cabeza  de  Vaca  and  Coronado. 


THE  BEGINNING  OF   KANSAS   HISTORY 


13 


It  must  be  remembered  that  the  whole  country  was  a 
vast  wilderness  without  names  or  boundary  lines,  and  we 
can  describe  the  journey  of  the  Spaniards 
only  by  using  names  and  boundary  lines 
that  have  come  into  existence  long  since 
that  time.  As  nearly  as  can  be  learned,  Coronado  and 
his  men  entered  Kansas  about  where  Clark  County  now 
is,  and  went  on  northward,  crossing  the  Arkansas  River 


Coronado  in 

Kansas 


M.hhL^, 

Ik 

w  :  ^-fAj  L.'  '  ^T    r-^ ^"^ 

p     J^M     1 

f         f 

\i 

l»^'*"' 

"  Francisco  Vasqueth  de  Coronado,  commander  of  an  expedition, 
arrived  at  this  place." 

at  or  near  the  site  of  Dodge  City.  From  this  point  they 
followed  the  river  to  Great  Bend,  and  then  continued  in  a 
northeasterly  direction  to  the  vicinity  of  Junction  City. 
At  the  end  of  their  journey  they  set  up  a  cross  bearing  the 
inscription:  "Francisco  Vasqueth  de  Coronado,  com- 
mander of  an  expedition,  arrived  at  this  place." 

After  all  this  weary  journey  they  had  reached  Quivira 


14  A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 

and  found  it  to  be  merely  the  home  of  a  tribe  of  Indians, 
the  Quiviras,  later  known  as  the  Pawnees. 

Quivira  fonnd  Coronado  wrote  in  a  letter  to  the  King 
of  Spain: 

"The  country  itself  is  the  best  I  have  ever  seen  for 
producing  all  of  the  fruits  of  Spain,  for,  besides  the  land 
itself  being  very  fat  and  black,  and  being  very  well 
watered  by  rivulets,  springs,  and  rivers,  I  found  primes 
like  those  in  Spain  and  nuts  and  very  good  sweet  grapes 
and  mulberries.  I  remained  twenty-five  dajrs  in  this 
province  of  Quivira,  both  to  see  and  explore  the  country, 
and  to  find  out  whether  there  was  anything  beyond  which 
could  be  of  service  to  your  Majesty,  because  the  guides 
who  had  brought  me  had  given  me  an  account  of  other 
provinces  beyond  this.  And  what  I  am  sure  of  is  that 
there  is  not  any  gold  or  any  other  metal  in  all  that 
country,  and  the  other  things  of  which  they  told  me  are 
nothing  but  little  villages,  and  in  many  of  these  they  do 
not  plant  anything,  and  do  not  have  any  houses,  except 
of  skins  and  sticks,  and  they  wander  around  with  the 
cows.  So  that  the  account  they  gave  me  was  false,  be- 
cause they  wanted  to  get  me  to  go  there  with  the  whole 
force,  believing  that  as  the  way  was  through  such  imin- 
habitable  deserts,  and  from  lack  of  water  they  would 
get  us  where  our  horses  and  we  would  die  of  thirst.  And 
the  guides  confessed  this,  and  they  said  they  did  it  by 
the  advice  of  the  natives  of  these  provinces."  ^ 

Empty-handed,  Coronado  and  his  little  band  of  Spanish 
knights  tinned  toward  New  Spain  and  carried  to  their 
Coronado's  re-  Waiting  countrymen  the  disappointing 
turn  to  New  story    of    their    two    years'    expedition. 

^^^  With  this  event   fifty  years  had  passed 

since  the  discovery  of  America,  and  for  the  next  two 
and  a  half  centm-ies  little  attention  was  paid  to  the  Kan- 
sas country. 

1.   Fourteenth  Annual  Report  of  the  Bureau  of  Ethnology. 


THE   BEGINNING  OF   KANSAS   HISTORY  15 

SUMMARY 

The  history  of  Kansas  begins  with  the  first  exploration 
of  this  country  by  white  men  nearly  four  hundred  years 
ago.  Spain  was  the  first  nation  to  explore  the  New  World. 
The  chief  purpose  of  the  Spaniards  was  to  find  gold. 
They  had  heard  from  the  Indians  of  rich  cities  to  the 
northward,  and  when  Cabeza  de  Vaca  told  them  similar 
tales  the  people  of  New  Spain  decided  to  explore  the 
country.  They  sent  Coronado  with  a  large  army  on  a 
journey  of  exploration  lasting  two  years.  He  failed  to  find 
gold,  but  his  expedition  is  of  interest  because  he  was 
the  first  white  man  known  to  have  traversed  what  is  now 
Kansas. 

REFERENCES 

Prentis,  History  of  Kansas,  pp.  1-23. 

Foster,  A  History  of  the  United  States,  p.  29. 

Spring,  Kansas,  pp.  17-19. 

Andreas,  History  of  Kansas,  pp.  44>46. 

Bourne,  Spain  in  America,  (vol.  in,  of  The  American  Nation, 
a  History). 

Blackmar,  Kansas,  Selected  Topics. 

Historical  Collections,  vol.  Vll,  pp.  20,  40,  268,  573;  vol.  Vlll,  p. 
152;    vol.  X,  p.  68;   vol.  xil,  p.  219. 

Fourteenth  Annual  Report  of  the  Bureau  of  Ethnology. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  How  long  has  it  been  since  Columbus  discovered  America? 

2.  Compare  the  population  at  that  time  with  the  present  popu- 
lation of  the  United  States. 

3.  In  what  part  of  the  United  States  is  Kansas? 

4.  Describe  briefly  the  western  part  of  the  Mississippi  valley. 
Describe  the  surface  of  Kansas. 

5.  What  relation  has  Spain  to  the  history  of  Kansas?  Why 
did  Spain  claim  the  first  right  to  America?  Name  some  of  the 
early  discoveries  of  the  Spaniards. 

6.  Where  was  New  Spain? 

7.  What  influenced  the  Spaniards  in  their  ventures  in  the  New 
Worid? 

8.  Who  was  Cabeza  de  Vaca?  Of  what  importance  is  the  ac- 
count of  his  adventures? 

9.  Tell  the  story  of  Coronado.  What  is  his  relation  to  Kansas 
history? 


CHAPTER  II 

KANSAS  BECOMES  A  PART  OF  THE  UNITED  STATES 

While  the  Spaniards  were  searching  for  wealth  in  the 
southern  part  of  North  America  the  French  were  trading 

with  the  Indians  in  the  northern  part  along 

the  St.  Lawrence  River  and  around  the 
Great  Lakes.  Among  the  French  were  many  Catholic 
priests,  called  Jesuits,  who  came  to  carry  their  religious 
faith  to  the  Indians.  In  1673,  one  of  these  Jesuits,  Father 
Marquette,  accompanied  a  trader  named  Joliet  on  an  ex- 
pedition to  explore  the  Mississippi  River.  They  launched 
their  canoes  on  the  great  river  and  floated  downstream 
for  hundreds  of  miles,  between  shores  that  in  some  places 
were  thickly  wooded,  and  in  others  were  grassy  plains. 
They  went  as  far  south  as  the  mouth  of  the  Arkansas 
River,  and  then  turned  and  began  the  long,  hard  task  of 
paddling  back. 

Among  those  who  heard  of  the  journey  of  Marquette 
and  Joliet  was  a  young  Frenchman,  La  Salle.    He  planned 

to  explore  the  whole  Mississippi  basin 
Louisiana^"l682     ^^^  ^^  ^^^^  possession  of  it  in  the  name  of 

the  King  of  France.  In  1682,  with  a  few 
companions,  he  floated  down  the  Mississippi  to  its  mouth. 
Here,  with  much  ceremony,  they  planted  a  cross,  buried 
a  leaden  plate  inscribed  with  the  arms  of  France,  and  de- 
clared that  all  the  land  drained  by  the  Mississippi  River 
and  its  tributaries  should  belong  to  France,  and  should 
be  named  Louisiana  in  honor  of  the  French  King,  Louis 
XIV.    Thus  in  1682,  nearly  two  centuries  after  the  dis- 

(16) 


KANSAS   BECOMES   PART  OF   UNITED   STATES  17 

covery  of  America,  Kansas  came  into  the  possession  of 
the  French. 

The  French  soon  planted  a  few  colonies  and  forts  along 
the  Mississippi  River  and  sent  out  explorers  some  of  whom 
The  end  of  Span-  ^^^  hsi^e  entered  the  present  bounds  of 
ish  and  French  Kansas.  This  roused  the  Spaniards  in 
explorations  Mexico,  who  wished  to  hold  the  territory 
for  Spain,  and  they  also  sent  expeditions.  The  armies 
of  both  nations  suffered  severely  at  the  hands  of  the 
Indians  and  the  exploration  of  the  Kansas  country  was 
given  up  by  both  Spain  and  France,  and  for  nearly  a 
century  more  it  lay  almost  forgotten.  The  next  explora- 
tion of  this  territory  was  by  people  of  another  nation. 

While  the  Spaniards  were  busy  in  the  South  and  the 
French  in  the  North,  another  people,  the  English,  began 
Th  E  r  h  ^  make  explorations  in  the  new  conti- 
nent. They  did  not  come  to  hunt  for  gold, 
nor  to  trade  with  the  Indians,  but  to  found  homes.  They 
settled  along  the  Atlantic  coast  between  the  French  in 
Canada  and  the  Spaniards  in  Florida,  and  claimed  the 
country  westward  to  the  Pacific  Ocean. 

As  time  went  on  and  the  settlements  increased  in 
number,  the  claims  of  the  French  and  the  English  con- 
Conflict  of  flicted  and  caused  much  strife  between 
French  and  the  colonies  of  the  two  countries.  The 
ng  IS  c  aims  question  of  the  ownership  of  the  land  was 
not  settled  until  the  close  of  the  French  and  Indian  War 
in  1763.  As  a  result  of  this  war  France  gave  up  all  her 
claims  in  America,  practically  everything  east  of  the 
Mississippi  to  England,  and  that  west  of  it  to  Spain. 
In  1800  Spain  ceded  her  portion  of  America  back  to 
France. 

In  the  meantime  the  English  colonies  had  fought  the 
Revolutionary  War  and  become  an  independent  nation. 


18  A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 

In    1803,    when    Thomas    Jefferson    was  President,  the 

United  States  bought  from  France  her  tract  of  country- 
lying  west  of  the  Mississippi  River.    This 

Purchase^^isos.    ^^  known  as  the  Louisiana  Purchase, 
and  the  date  is  one  to  be  remembered, 

for  it  marks  the  end  of  French  claims  in  America,  and  it 

marks  the  time  when  what  is  now  Kansas  became  a  part 

of  the  United  States.^ 

More  than  three  centuries  of  American  history  had 

passed  and  the  country  west  of  the  Mississippi  River 
remained   unsettled   and   practically   un- 

One^century         known.     The  Spaniard  and  the  French- 
man had  come  and  gone,  but  the  Indian 

still  hunted  the  buffalo  on  the  prairies.    The  white  man 

had  not  yet  made  his  home  in  the  Kansas  country. 

SUMMARY 

Spain  explored  in  the  South  in  search  of  wealth,  France 
in  the  North  to  trade  in  furs  with  the  Indians,  and  England 
along  the  coast  between  these  two  to  establish  homes. 
Spain  claimed  the  Kansas  country  because  of  the  explora- 
tion by  Coronado,  France  through  the  claims  of  Marquette 
and  La  Salle,  and  England  through  the  ocean-to-ocean 
claim.  None  of  these  nations  succeeded  in  accomplishing 
anything  here,  and  the  Kansas  country  was  left  alone  for 
nearly  a  century  after  it  came  into  the  possession  of 
France.  At  the  close  of  the  French  and  Indian  War  the 
country  west  of  the  Mississippi  was  ceded  to  Spain.  Later 
it  came  again  into  the  hands  of  France,  and  was  purchased 
by  the  United  States  in  1803. 

1.  In  1819  the  United  States  gave  to  Spain  that  part  of  Kansas 
lying  south  of  the  Arkansas  River  and  west  of  the  100th  meridian. 
This  territory  again  became  a  part  of  the  United  States  by  the  an- 
nexation of  Texas  in  1845. 


KANSAS  BECOMES   PART  OP  UNITED  STATES  19 

REFERENCES 

Elaon,  History  of  the  United  States,  pp.  161,  384. 

Fiske,  Discovery  of  America,  vol.  li,  chap.  xil. 

Foster,  A  History  of  the  United  States. 

Prentis,  History  of  Kansas,  pp.  24-40. 

Parkman,  La  Salle  and  the  Great  West. 

Spring,  Kansas,  pp.  19-20. 

Historical  Collections,  vol.  ix,  p.  250;  vol.  x,  p.  336. 

Wilder,  Annals  of  Kansas,  pp.  16-18. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  Who  were  the  Jesuits?  What  can  you  say  of  Marquette? 
Joliet?     La  Salle? 

2.  Contrast  the  motives  of  the  French  and  the  Spanish  in  coming 
to  America. 

3.  Why  did  the  English  come  to  the  New  World? 

4.  What  territory  was  claimed  by  the  French?  By  the  Spanish? 
By  the  English? 

5.  To  what  nations  did  what  is  now  Kansas  successively  belong? 
How  and  when  did  it  first  become  a  part  of  the  United  States?  How 
long  was  this  after  the  discovery  of  America? 


CHAPTER  III 

EXPLORATION  OF  THE  KANSAS  COUNTRY  BY  THE 
UNITED  STATES 

When  the  United  States  bought  Louisiana  the  country 

from  the  Mississippi  River  to  the  Pacific  Ocean  was  a 

vast  unknown  area.     President  Jefferson 

President  ^^s  eager  to  learn  something  about  the 

explorers  great  West,  and  sent  out  several  exploring 

parties. 

The  first  expedition,  sent  in  1804,  the  year  following  the 

purchase  of  Louisiana,  was  in  charge  of  Meriwether  Lewis 

,  .  ,  „-  -  and  William  Clark.  They  were  instructed 
Lewis  and  Clark  xi,      tv/t-  •    id-  j 

to  move  up  the  Missouri  River  and  on 

to  the  Pacific  Ocean.  After  a  difficult  journey  lasting 
two  and  a  half  years  the  party  returned  to  St.  Louis  and 
brought  to  the  people  of  the  United  States  much  im- 
portant information  concerning  the  West.  It  is  the  part 
of  their  journey  along  the  border  of  what  is  now  Kansas 
in  which  we  are  most  interested. 

With  about  forty-five  men  and  three  boats  Lewis  and 
Clark  started  up  the  Missouri  River  in  the  spring  of  1804. 
The  'ourn  '^^^  horsemen  rode  along  the  bank  to 

hunt  and  bring  in  game  which  was  to  go 
far  toward  supplying  provisions  for  the  expedition.  After 
a  five  weeks'  journey  they  reached  the  mouth  of  the 
Kansas  River,  and  encamped  that  night  on  the  present 
site  of  Kansas  City,  Kansas.  From  there  they  continued 
up  the  Missouri  River  where  it  forms  the  present  bound- 

(20) 


EXPLORATION   OF  THE   KANSAS   COUNTRY  21 

ary  line  of  Kansas,  along  the  border  of  what  has  since 
become  Leavenworth,  Atchison,  and  Doniphan  counties. 
Their  account  of  the  journey  describes  the  country  through 
which  they  passed  and  the  different  Indian  tribes  and 
villages  they  saw.  It  speaks  of  an  Indian  tribe  as  "hunt- 
ing on  the  plains  for  buffalo  which  our  hunters  have  seen 
for  the  first  time."  Again  we  read,  "Pecan  trees  were 
this  day  seen,  and  large  quantities  of  deer  and  wild  tur- 
key." By  July  4  they  had  reached  a  point  not  far  from 
the  present  city  of  Atchison.  They  did  not  have  the 
means  for  much  of  a  celebration,  but  their  observance  of 
the  day  included  the  firing  of  "an  evening  gun"  and  the 
naming  of  two  streams.  Fourth  of  July  Creek,  and  Inde- 
pendence Creek.  Independence  Creek  still  retains  its 
name.  A  week  later  they  passed  the  fortieth  parallel, 
which  afterward  became  the  northern  boundary  of  Kan- 
sas, and  continued  on  their  way  to  the  Pacific. 

In   1806    another  exploring    party  was   sent   out  in 
command  of  Zebulon  Montgomery  Pike,  a  young  lieuten- 
ant in  the  army.     He  was  instructed  to 
expedition  ascend  the  Missouri  River,  visit  the  vari- 

ous Indian  tribes  in  the  Kansas  country, 
go  west  until  the  frontier  of  New  Mexico  was  reached,  then 
south  toward  the  source  of  the  Red  River  which  he  was 
to  descend  to  the  Mississippi,  and  thence  to  St.  Louis,  the 
starting  point.  The  journey  did  not,  however,  follow 
just  this  route. 

The  Osage  Indians  lived  in  the  eastern  part  of  Kan- 
sas, south  of  the  Kansas  River.  At  their  villages  Pike 
purchased  supplies  for  the  overland  jour- 
Osage'lndians  ^^y*  From  there  he  went  west  and  then 
northwest  toward  the  Pawnee  village 
which  is  believed  to  have  been  within  the  bounds  of  what 
is  now  Republic  County. 


22  A   HISTORY   OF    KANSAS 

About  the  time  he  crossed  the  Solomon  River  he  came 
upon  the  trail  of  Spanish  troops.  It  seems  that  the 
authorities  in  Mexico  had  in  some  way 
Oie  Pawnees  heard  of  the  Pike  expedition  and  had  sent 
an  army  of  five  hundred  men  to  intercept 
him.  These  forces  missed  each  other,  but  when  Pike 
reached  the  village  of  the  Pawnee  Indians  he  found  them 
in  possession  of  many  blankets,  bridles,  saddles,  and  other 
things  which  they  had  received  from  the  Spaniards.  After 
having  been  visited  with  much  ceremony  by  the  mounted 
and  lordly  army  from  Mexico,  the  Indians  were  not 
inclined  to  be  courteous  to  Pike  and  his  score  of  dusty, 
bedraggled  footmen.  After  much  unpleasantness  and 
delay  a  council  attended  by  four  hundred  warriors  was 
held.  In  his  opening  address  Pike  spoke,  among  other 
things,  of  the  numerous  Spanish  flags  in  the  village. 
Pointing  to  one  which  floated  above  the  tent  of  the  head 
chief,  he  demanded  that  it  be  lowered  and  that  an  American 
flag  be  put  in  its  place.  Several  Indians  made  speeches 
without  mentioning  the  flag.  Pike  again  told  them  they 
must  choose  between  the  Spanish  and  the  American 
governments.  The  Americans  awaited  the  answer  in 
anxious  suspense.  Finally  an  old  chief  arose.  He  slowly 
hauled  down  the  Spanish  flag,  laid  it  at  Pike's  feet, 
and  received  the  American  flag  in  return.  This  he  un- 
furled above  the  chief's  tent,  and  for  the  first  time,  so  far 
as  is  known,  the  Stars  and  Stripes  floated  over  Kansas. 

From  this  place  Pike  and  his  men  moved  southwest 

to  the  Arkansas  River,  where  the  party  divided,  some 

^•1.  .  ^  1  J  of  them  going  down  the  river  and  on 
Pike  In  Colorado   ,  _ .,  ,  ,  . 

home.     Pike  and  his  remaining  men,  m- 

stead  of  searching  for  the  Red  River  according  to  instruc- 
tions, followed  the  Arkansas  River  into  what  is  now 
Colorado.     They  pushed  westward,  and  after  many  days 


EXPLORATION  OF  THE   KANSAS  COUNTRY  23 

of  travel  sighted  a  mountain  which  appeared  at  first  like 
a  small  blue  cloud  but  which  proved  to  be  a  great  bald 
peak  of  the  Rocky  Mountains.  This  peak  has  since  been 
named  Pikers  Peak  in  honor  of  the  explorer.  By  this 
time  it  was  winter  and  their  supplies  were  low.  Pike  and 
his  men  suffered  terribly  from  cold  and  hunger  while 


Pawnee 


The  expedition  of  Pike,  and  the  location  of  the  ori^nal  Indian  tribes. 
There  were  no  clearly  defined  boundaries  between  the  tribes. 

wandering  among  the  mountains.  Hoping  to  better  their 
condition  they  moved  toward  the  southwest,  only  to  find 
themselves  taken  prisoners  in  Spanish  territory.  Later, 
however,  they  were  escorted  across  Texas  to  the  Ameri- 
can frontier  in  Louisiana  and  released. 

A  whole  year  had  passed  before  they  found  themselves 
again  in  St.  Louis,  a  year  of  hardship  for  them,  but  well 
worth  while,  nevertheless,  for  Pike  brought 
^^^e^retum  o  |^^^j^  ^  great  deal  of  valuable  informa- 
tion. That  he  was  a  better  soldier  than 
farmer  may  be  seen  from  this  passage  taken  from  his 
journal: 

"From  these  immense  prairies  may  rise  one  great  ad- 
vantage to  the  United  States,  viz.,  the  restriction  of  our 


24 


A   HISTORY   OF   KANSAS 


population  to  certain  limits,  and  thereby  a  continuation 
of  the  union.  Our  citizens,  being  so  prone  to  rambling 
and  extending  themselves  on  the  frontiers,  will,  through 
necessity,  be  constrained  to  limit  their  extent  on  the  west 
to  the  borders  of  the  Missouri  and  the  Mississippi,  while 
they  leave  the  prairies,  incapable  of  cultivation,  to  the 
wandering  aborigines  of  the  country."  ^ 

Another  explorer.  Major  Long,  who  came  in  1819  and 
1820,  likewise  expressed  the  idea  that  most  of  the  country 

was  unfit  for  cultivation,  and  therefore 
American  Desert  uninhabitable  by  an  agricultural  people. 

He  even  went  so  far  as  to  say  the  country 
bore  a  "resemblance  to  the  deserts  of  Siberia."  Washing- 
ton Irving,  the  great  writer,  said  of  this  region:  "It  could 
be  well  named,  the  Great  American  Desert.     It  spreads 


An  Indian  Village.  The  tribes  that  lived  in  permanent  homes  built 
lodges  consisting  of  an  embankment  of  earth  topped  with  a  row 
of  poles  brought  together  at  the  center  and  thatched  with  bark 
and  grass. 


1.  Coues,  Expedition  of  Zebulon  Montgomery  Pike. 


EXPLORATION   OF  THE   KANSAS   COUNTRY 


25 


forth  into  undulating  and  treeless  plains  and  desolate 
sandy  wastes,  wearisome  to  the  eye  from  their  extent  and 
monotony.  It  is  a  land  where  no  man  permanently  abides, 
for  at  certain  seasons  of  the  year  there  is  no  food  for  the 
hunter  or  his  steed." 

The  views  of  these  men  largely  molded  public  opinion 
concerning  the  West.  The  country  out  of  which  has  been 
carved  such  prosperous  agricultural  states  as  Oklahoma, 
Kansas,  and  Nebraska  was,  a  hundred  years  ago,  known 
as  the  **  Great  American  Desert,"  and  was  so  named  on 
the  maps  of  that  time. 

The  western  prairies  had  for  untold  ages  been  occu- 
pied by  Indians.  At  the  time  of  Pike's  expedition  there 
were  four  tribes  living  within  the  pres- 
?n  KanilL^^^  ent  bounds  of  Kansas.  These  were  the 
Kanza,  the  Osage,  the  Pawnee,  and  the 
Comanche  tribes.  The  Kanza,  or  Kaw,  Indians  lived  in 
the  northeastern  part  of 
the  State  and  were  the 
ones  seen  by  Lewis  and 
Clark  in  their  expedition 
up  the  Missouri  River. 
It  is  from  this  tribe  that 
Kansas  probably  received 
its  name.  The  Osage  In- 
dians were  located  in  the 
eastern  part,  south  of  the 
Kansas  River.  The  Paw- 
nee tribe  lived  north  and 
west  of  the  Kanza  Indi- 
ans. It  was  in  the  Osage 
village  that  Pike  secured 
supplies  for  his  journey, 
and  in  the  Pawnee  village  interior  of  an  Indian  Lodge. 


26  A  HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 

that  he  caused  the  Spanish  flag  to  be  lowered.  The  Paw- 
nees were  once  called  the  Quiviras.  The  first  of  their 
tribe  that  we  know  anything  about  was  "Turk/'  who 
led  Coronado  into  the  wilderness.  These  three  tribes 
lived  in  permanent  homes  and  had  their  tribal  villages,  but 
the  fourth  tribe  were  wanderers.  They  were  the  Co- 
manches,  sometimes  called  the  Padoucas,  and  they  roved 
over  the  western  part  of  Kansas  and  adjacent  territory, 
hunting  buffaloes  and  following  the  herds  as  they  grazed 
from  place  to  place.  They  were  fine  horsemen,  and  brave, 
but  very  fierce  and  warlike. 

This  was  the  Kansas  of  a  century  ago.    At  that  time 
it  had  received  neither  name  nor  boundaries.     For  the 

first  fifty  years  that  this  region  was  a 
Icen^urTtgo^     part  of  the  United  States,  that  is,  from 

the  purchase  of  Louisiana  until  Kansas 
was  organized  as  a  territory  in  1854,  the  country  was 
little  used  by  the  white  people  except  as  a  pathway 
to  the  West. 


SUMMARY 

President  Jefferson,  wishing  to  learn  something  of  the 
unknown  western  country,  sent  out  two  exploring  ex- 
peditions. The  first,  in  1804,  was  in  charge  of  Lewis 
and  Clark  who  were  to  follow  the  Missouri  River  and  to 
go  on  across  the  mountains  until  they  reached  the  Pacific 
coast.  They  passed  along  the  northeast  border  of  Kansas. 
The  next  exploring  party  was  in  command  of  Pike.  His 
route  was  somewhat  in  the  form  of  a  circle.  Beginning 
at  St.  Louis  it  was  to  pass  through  Kansas,  then  south, 
then  east,  and  up  the  Mississippi  to  St.  Louis.  He 
visited  the  Osage  Indians  in  eastern  Kansas,  the  Paw- 
nee Indians  in  northern  Kansas  where  he  raised  the 
American  flag,  and  then  marched  into  Colorado  where 
he  discovered  Pike's  Peak.  From  Colorado  he  went  into 
what  is  now  New  Mexico,  where  he  was  taken  prisoner  by 


EXPLORATION  OF  THE  KANSAS  COUNTRY      27 

the  Spaniards.  They  took  him  nearly  to  the  Mississippi 
River  and  released  him.  On  his  return  he  reported  this 
country  as  unfit  for  settlement,  and  his  opinion  was 
shared  by  later  explorers.  At  the  time  of  Pike's  expe- 
dition there  were  four  tribes  of  Indians  in  Kansas,  the 
Osages,  the  Kanzas,  the  Pawnees,  and  the  Comanches. 

REFERENCES 

Prentis,  History  of  Kansas,  pp.  31-41. 
Andreas,  History  of  Kansas,  pp.  49-53. 
Coues,  Expedition  of  Zebulon  Montgomery  Pike. 
Blackmar,  Kansas,  vol.  ll. 

Historical  Collections,  vol.  ix,  p.  574;  vol.  VII,  pp.  261-317;  vol. 
VI,  p.  325;  vol.  x,  pp.  15-159. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  What  was  known  of  the  Louisiana  Purchase  at  the  time  it  was 
acquired  by  the  United  States? 

2.  Who  were  Lewis  and  Clark?    Give  an  account  of  their  expedi- 
tion as  it  related  to  Kansas. 

3.  What  route  was  Pike  instructed  to  take? 

4.  Describe  Pike's  visit  to  the  Osages.    His  visit  to  the  Pawnees. 
By  what  other  name  do  we  know  the  Pawnees? 

5.  Give  an  account  of  the  remainder  of  Pike's  journey. 

6.  What  was  Pike's  opinion  of  the  Kansas  country?     Long's 
opinion?    Washington  Irving's  opinion? 

7.  How  much  of  Kansas  did  the  Louisiana  Purchase  include? 

8.  What  Indian  tribes  lived  within  the  present  bounds  of  Kansas? 
Locate  and  tell  something  of  each. 

9.  When  was  Kansas  Territory  organized?    How  long  was  this 
after  the  Louisiana  purchase? 

10.  What  use  did  the  white  people  make  of  Kansas  during  this 
period? 


CHAPTER  IV 

KANSAS  AS  A  PATHWAY 

Nearly  three  centuries  passed  from  the  time  Cortez 
led  the  Spaniards  into  Mexico  until  Kansas  became  a 
part  of  the  United  States.  During  those 
century  ago  years  Spanish  settlements  had   increased 

in  number  until  at  the  time  of  Pike's  expe- 
dition Mexico  included  most  of  what  is  now  California, 
Nevada,  Utah,  Arizona,  New  Mexico,  and  Colorado. 

Santa  Fe,  said  to  be  the  second  oldest  city  in  the  United 
States,  was  the  most  important  point  on  the  northern 
Old  s  t  F  frontier  of  Mexico.  In  those  days  it  was 
not  like  the  busy  American  Santa  Fe  of 
to-day.  It  had  about  two  thousand  inhabitants,  practically 
all  Spaniards,  and  they  lived  in  little  adobe  houses  ar- 
ranged around  a  public  square  after  the  manner  of  Spanish 
cities. 

The  "Great  American  Desert"  lay  between  Santa  Fe 
and  the  settlements  of  the  western  border  of  the  United 
States.  But  Captain  Pike's  interesting 
Saiua^Fe  TraU  descriptions  of  the  wealth  and  resources 
of  the  Spanish  country  stirred  up  enthusi- 
asm, and  Americans  began  to  make  their  way  across  the 
plains  to  trade  with  the  Spaniards.  Santa  Fe  soon  be- 
came an  important  trading  point  for  all  of  northeastern 
Mexico.  The  traders,  on  their  journeys  to  the  Spanish 
city,  wore  a  pathway  that  crossed  the  length  of  Kansas. 
This  pathway  came  to  be  called  the  "Santa  Fe  Trail." 

(29) 


KANSAS  AS  A  PATHWAY  81 

Although  a  few  earlier  trips  were  made,  the  trade 
with  Santa  Fe  really  began  in  the  year  1822  with  the 
Captain  Beck-  joumey  of  Captain  Becknell,  of  Missouri, 
neli  the  first  He  had  started  out  the  year  before  to 
trader  trade  with  the  Indians,  and  had  gone  on 

with  a  party  of  Mexican  rangers  to  Santa  Fe  where  he 
sold  his  small  supply  of  merchandise  so  profitably  that 
he  decided  to  try  again  on  a  larger  scale.  In  1822  he 
took  about  thirty  men  and  five  thousand  dollars'  worth 
of  merchandise.  His  success  encouraged  others,  and  a 
regular  trade  with  Santa  Fe  was  soon  established. 

For  several  years  most  of  the  transportation  along  the 
Trail  was  done  with  pack  mules.  A  caravan  of  pack 
Merchandise  mules  usually  numbered  from  fifty  to 
carried  on  two  hundred,  each  animal  carrying  about 

pac    mu  es  three   hundred   pounds   of   merchandise. 

From  the  earliest  times  the  Mexicans  had  used  pack 
mules  as  a  means  of 
transportation,  and 
were  skilled  in  hand- 
ling them.  For  this 
reason  theAmerican 
traders  usually  em- 
ployed Mexicans  for 
the  work  of  the 
pack  train.  Theav-  ^^^^  M"^^- 

erage  rate  of  travel  of  a  mule  train  was  from  twelve  to  fif- 
teen miles  a  day.  Since  the  Trail  was  nearly  eight  hundred 
miles  long,  fifty  to  sixty  days  were  required  for  the  trip. 

Probably  the  first  time  that  wagons  were  used  was 
in  1824,  when  a  company  of  traders  left  Missouri  with 
twenty-five  wagons  and  a  train  of  pack 
on*the"T°^  mules.    This  experiment  was  so  satisfac- 

tory that  the  use  of  wagons  soon  became 


32  A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 

general  and  mules  were  used  less  and  less  as  pack 
animals. 

Travel  over  the  Santa  Fe  Trail  rapidly  increased,  and 
the  history  of  those  days  is  filled  with  stories  of  ex- 
citing adventure,  of  danger,  of  privation, 
Si^eVndfan?  ^""^  and  of  deeds  of  courage.  The  source 
of  greatest  danger  and  excitement  was 
the  Indians,  for  they  did  not  take  kindly  to  the  white 
men's  use  of  their  hunting  grounds.  For  several  years 
the  traders  crossed  the  plains  in  small  parties,  each  man 
taking  only  two  or  three  hundred  dollars'  worth  of  goods, 
and  they  were  seldom  molested.  But  peace  did  not  last 
long.  The  Indians  soon  learned  more  about  the  journeys 
of  the  traders  and  how  to  estimate  the  value  of  their 
stock.  Also,  many  of  the  traders  considered  every 
Indian  a  deadly  enemy  and  killed  all  that  fell  into  their 
power  simply  because  some  wrong  was  known  to  have 
been  committed  by  Indians.  This  treatment  tended  to 
stir  up  the  hatred  of  the  red  men  and  to  make  them 
watch  every  opportunity  for  revenge. 

An  example  of  the  enmity  between  the  Indians  and  the 
traders  may  be  seen  in  an  occurrence  of  1828.  Two  young 
men  went  to  sleep  on  the  bank  of  a  stream  a  short  distance 
from  their  caravan  and  were  fatally  shot,  it  was  supposed, 
with  their  own  guns.  When  their  comrades  found  them 
one  was  dead,  and  the  other  died  by  the  time  the  caravan 
reached  the  Cimarron  River,  about  forty  miles  farther  on. 
During  the  simple  burial  ceremonies  a  party  of  six  or 
seven  Indians  appeared  on  the  other  side  of  the  river.  It 
is  probable  that  these  Indians  knew  nothing  of  the  crime 
committed  or  they  would  not  have  approached  the  white 
men.  Some  of  the  men  took  this  view,  but,  against  their 
advice,  the  others  fired  and  killed  all  of  the  Indians  but 
one,  who  escaped  to  carry  the  news  to  his  tribe.     The 


KANSAS   AS  A   PATHWAY  33 

Indians  of  the  wronged  tribe  then  followed  the  caravan 
to  the  Arkansas  River  where  they  robbed  the  traders 
of  nearly  a  thousand  head  of  horses  and  mules.  Other 
robberies  and  murders  followed  until  it  became  necessary 
for  the  traders  to  petition  the  National  Government  for 
troops.  The  next  year  soldiers  escorted  the  caravan 
nearly  to  the  Cimarron  River.  Gk)vemment  protection 
was  furnished  again  in  1834,  and  in  1843.  In  the  other 
years  the  traders  fought  their  own  way,  but  the  day  of 
small  parties  was  over.  For  mutual  protection,  the  traders 
banded  together.  A  single  big  caravan  started  out  each 
spring  as  soon  as  the  grass  was  sufficient  to  pasture  their 
animals,  and  returned  in  the  fall. 

For  many  years  the  city  of  Franklin,  on  the  Missouri 
River,  was  the  starting  point  of  the  traders,  the  place 
The  starting  where  they  purchased  their  goods  and 
point  of  the  their  outfits.     Later,  Independence,  Mis- 

^^^  ^""^  souri,  and  finally  Westport  which  is  now 

a  part  of  Kansas  City,  became  the  emporium  of  the  Santa 
Fe  trade.  The  tourists  and  traders  began  to  gather  about 
the  first  of  May  for  the  journey  that  would  begin  near 
the  middle  of  that  month. 

The  ordinary  supplies  to  be  taken  for  each  man  were 
about  fifty  pounds  of  flour,  fifty  pounds  of  bacon,  ten 
s      I*     t  k         pounds  of  coffee,  twenty  pounds  each  of 

sugar,  rice,  and  beans,  and  a  little  salt. 
Anything  else  was  considered  an  unnecessary  luxury  and 
was  seldom  taken.  The  buff alo  furnished  fresh  meat  for 
the  travelers. 

After  the  first  few  years  horses  were  little  used  on  the 
Trail  except  for  riding.     A  wagon  was  usually  drawn  by 

eight  mules  or  oxen,  though  some  of  the 
wagons^"  larger  ones  required  ten  or  twelve.     The 

large  wagons  often  carried  as  much  as 


34 


A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 


five  thousand  pounds  of  merchandise  and  supplies.  The 
loading  of  the  wagons  for  a  journey  of  nearly  eight  hun- 
dred miles  was  a  very  particular  piece  of  work. 

Although  the  traders  banded  together  in  one  big  cara- 
van, they  did  not  all  start  from  the  same  place  nor  at 
Council  Grove  ^^^  same  time.  The  Kanza  and  Osage 
the  meeting  Indians   seldom   committed  worse  deeds 

^  ^^^  than  petty  thievery,  and  the  more  warlike 

Comanches  and  Pawnees  did  not  often  appear  along  the 

first  two  hundred  miles 
of  the  Trail.  The  place 
where  all  the  wagons 
united  to  form  a  cara- 
van was  Council  Grove, 
a  point  about  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  miles 
west  of  Independence. 
In  those  days  Council 
Grove  consisted  of  a 
strip  of  fine  timber 
along  the  Neosho  val- 
ley. It  is  said  to  have 
been  named  in  1825  by 
the  United  States  Com- 
missioners who  met  on 
this  spot  some  Osage 
Indians,  with  whom 
they  made  a  treaty  for 
the  right  of  way  for  the 
Santa  Fe  Trail.    About 

Council  Oak,  under  which  the  Com-  1^50  a  blacksmith  shop 

missioners  and  Indians  met  at  Coun-  and  two  or  three  trad- 

cil  Grove  to  make  their  treaty.     It  is  ,    cf  nrp<;  wprp  P^t^h- 

still  standing.     A  Santa  Fe  marker  ^J^     Stores  were  estaD- 

has  been  placed  beneath  its  branches.  lished  at  Council  Grove 


KANSAS  AS  A   PATHWAY  35 

and  this  place  became  ''the  last  chance  for  supplies"  for 
westbound  travelers. 

We  can  not  get  an  idea  of  those  days  in  any  better 
way,  perhaps,  than  by  following  an  account  of  one  of  the 
caravans.  Josiah  Gregg,  who  crossed  the 
Gregg*^**^  prairie  eight  times,  has  left  a  very  in- 

teresting record  of  his  experiences.  Many 
of  the  following  facts  are  taken  from  his  account  of  the 
journey  of  1831. 

For  this  particular  trip  there  were  two  hundred  men 
and  nearly  a  hundred  wagons,  with  a  dozen  smaller 
vehicles,  and  two  carriages  carrying  can- 
th'/JaiavaS°  *"'  ^^n.  The  total  value  of  the  merchandise 
was  about  $200,000.  For  so  large  an  un- 
dertaking it  was,  of  course,  necessary  to  have  some  kind 
of  organization.  According  to  custom,  therefore,  they 
elected  officers  and  adopted  a  set  of  rules.  The  head 
man  was  the  "Captain  of  the  Caravan,"  who  directed 
the  order  of  travel,  selected  the  camping  grounds,  and 
performed  many  other  duties  of  a  general  nature.  The 
wagons  were  divided  into  four  groups,  each  group  under 
the  charge  of  a  lieutenant,  who  selected  crossings  and 
superintended  the  " forming"  of  the  camp.  The  men  were 
well  armed  with  rifles,  shotguns,  and  an  abundant  supply 
of  pistols  and  knives. 

When  the  time  came  to  start  from  Council  Grove  the 
command  "Catch  up!  Catch  up!"  sounded  by  the  captain 
and  passed  on  to  all  the  groups,  started  a 
Uie^cara^valf  ^^  ^^^^^  ^^  hurry  and  uproar  as  the  teamsters 
vied  with  each  other  to  be  first  to  shout 
"All's  set!"  After  a  period  of  shouting  at  animals,  the 
clanking  of  chains,  and  the  rattling  of  harness  and  yokes, 
all  were  ready.  The  command  "Stretch  out!"  was  given, 
and  the  line  of  march  began. 


36 


A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 


Crossing  the  Plains. 

-Council  Grove  seemed  to  form  the  western  boundary 
of  the  very  rich,  fertile,  and  well- timbered  country.  From 
The  country  ^^^^  westward  the  streams  were  lined  with 

west  of  Council     but  little   timber  growth,  and  much  of 

'^^^  that  was  Cottonwood.    The  country  was 

mostly  prairie,  with  the  vegetation  gradually  becoming 
more  scarce.  The  traders  usually  lashed  under  their 
wagons  a  supply  of  logs  for  needed  repairs,  for  Council 
Grove  furnished  the  last  good  wood  they  would  pass. 
Westward  from  Council  Grove  not  a  single  human  habi- 
tation, not  even  an  Indian  settlement,  was  to  be  seen 
along  the  whole  route.  It  is  difficult  to  imagine  such  a 
condition  in  Kansas  only  eighty  years  ago. 

Soon  after  leaving  Council  Grove  the  traders  began 
watching  for  buffaloes,  and  when  a  small  herd  was  sighted 

i>  »  1  •  u*  J  it  created  much  excitement.  About  half 
Buffaloes  sighted  ,,  ,      ,  ,,  .       , 

the  men  had  never  seen    these  animals 

before.    All  the  horsemen  rushed  toward  the  herd,  and 

some  of  the  drivers  even  left  their  teams  and  followed 

on  foot. 


KANSAS  AS  A  PATHWAY 


37 


Buffaloes, 


culled  Americ^:. 


rhey  were  described 


Pawnee  Rock 


by  Cabeza  de  Vaca  as  "crooked-backed  oxen.' 

After  a  few  more  days  of  travel,  during  which  nothing 
more  serious  happened  than  a  few  false  alarms  of  Indians, 
they  reached  the  Arkansas  River.  Another 
day's  travel  over  a  level  plain  brought 
them  in  sight  of  Pawnee  Rock,  a  great  rock  standing  on 

the  plains  near  the  Big  Bend 
of  the  Arkansas,  and  a  land- 
mark known  from  one  end  of 
the  Trail  to  the  other.  The 
surrounding  country  was  not 
occupied  by  any  tribe  of  In- 
dians, but  was  claimed  by  all 
of  them  as  a  hunting  ground, 
for  it  was  a  fine  pasture  for  buf- 
faloes. For  many  years  it  had 
been  the  scene  of  bloody  bat- 
tles between  different  tribes. 
Pawnee  Rock.  The  Rock  afforded  an  excel- 


38  A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 

lent  hiding  place  and  retreat.  Since  the  old  Trail  passed 
within  a  few  yards  of  it,  this  became  a  dreaded  spot  for 
the  traders,  for  at  this  point  they  seldom  escaped  a  skirmish 
with  the  Indians.  The  Rock  probably  received  its  name 
from  some  of  the  bloody  deeds  of  the  Pawnees,  who 
were  especially  connected  with  these  scenes. 

When  the  caravan  camped  at  Ash  Creek  the  traders 
found  a  few  old  moccasins  scattered  around  and  some 
camp  fires  still  burning,  which  seemed  to 
indicate  the  near  presence  of  Indians. 
They  had,  up  to  this  point,  marched  in  two  columns,  but 
after  crossing  Pawnee  Fork  they  formed  four  lines  for 
better  protection  in  case  of  attack.  In  camp  the  wagons 
were  arranged  in  the  form  of  a  hollow  square,  each  line 
forming  a  side.  This  provided  an  enclosure  for  the  ani- 
mals when  needed,  and  a  fortification  against  the  Indians. 
Ordinarily  the  camp  fires  were  lighted  outside  the  square, 
the  men  slept  on  the  ground  there,  and  the  animals  were 
picketed  near. 

The  next  important  stopping  place  was  The  Caches, 
near  the  present  site  of  Fort  Dodge.  All  that  marked 
-,,    ^  this  spot  from  the   surrounding  country 

was  a  group  of  pits  in  the  ground.  A 
number  of  years  before,  a  small  party  of  traders  had 
attempted  to  go  to  Santa  Fe  in  the  fall.  By  the  time 
they  reached  the  Arkansas  River  a  heavy  snowstorm  forced 
them  to  take  shelter  on  a  large  island,  where  they  were 
kept  for  three  months  by  the  severe  winter.  During 
this  time  most  of  their  animals  perished.  When  spring 
came,  having  no  way  to  carry  their  goods,  they  made 
some  caches^  where  they  stored  their  merchandise  until 
they  could  bring  mules  to  haul  it  to  Santa  Fe. 

1.  A  cache  was  made  by  digging  a  jug-shaped  hole  in  the  ground 
and  lining  it  with  dry  grass,  or  sticks,  or  anything  to   keep  out 


KANSAS  AS  A  PATHWAY  39 

At  Cimarron  Crossing  the  Trail  divided,  and  did  not 
reunite  until  within  a  few  miles  of  Santa  Fe.  The  south- 
The  Trail  ^^    route    was    shorter,    but    it    meant 

divided  into  crossing    fifty    miles    of    desert    before 

two  routes  reachmg  the  Cimarron  River.    In  all  that 

stretch  of  level  plain  there  was  no  trail,  nor  landmark, 
nor  stream  of  water.  Travelers  sometimes  lost  their  way 
in  this  desert,  and  unless  they  had  prepared  for  this  part 
of  the  journey  by  taking  along  a  sufficient  supply  of 
water,  they  perished  of  thirst. 

This  caravan  decided  to  take  the  southern  route.  A 
band  of  Indians  soon  appeared,  carrying  an  American 
flag  as  a  token  of  peace.  They  talked  with 
4ith  iSdians"  *^®  traders  by  means  of  signs  and  told 
them  there  were  immense  numbers  of 
Indians  ahead.  A  little  later  a  band  of  warriors  appeared 
and  threatened  to  fight.  There  was  great  excitement  as 
the  caravan  prepared  for  battle  and  the  Indians  con- 
tinued to  pour  over  the  hills.  But  there  was  no  fighting, 
for  the  chief  came  forward  with  his  '* peace  pipe"  from 
which  the  captain  took  a  whiff.  The  warriors  were 
ordered  back  to  rejoin  the  long  train  of  squaws  and 
papooses  who  were  following  with  the  baggage.  There 
were  probably  three  thousand  Indians  in  this  party,  and 
they  moved  down  into  the  valley  and  pitched  their  wig- 
wams. The  traders  felt  siu-e  that  since  the  women  and 
children  were  along  the  Indians  would  not  be  hostile,  and 
they,  therefore,  formed  their  camp  a  few  hundred  yards 
away.  The  Indians  gathered  around  to  gaze  at  the  wag- 
ons, for  it  was  probably  the  first  time  most  of  them  had 

moisture.  Then  the  goods  were  packed  in  and  the  opening  closed 
very  carefully  by  replacing  the  sod  and  carrying  away  the  earth  that 
was  removed  so  that  no  sign  was  left  by  which  the  cache  might  be 
discovered.  Sometimes  a  camp  fire  was  built  over  it  to  destroy  all 
traces  of  the  cache. 


40  A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 

ever  seen  such  vehicles.  Some  of  them  followed  to  the 
next  camp,  and  the  next  day  a  large  number  of  them 
gathered  around  the  caravan.  This  sort  of  thing  con- 
tinued until  the  traders  made  up  a  present  of  fifty  or 
sixty  dollars'  worth  of  goods  to  ''seal  the  treaty  of  peace." 

Some  days  later  the  caravan  met  a  Mexican  buffalo 
hunter.  He  told  the  traders  the  news  from  Santa  Fe, 
the  first  they  had  heard  since  the  return 
news  ^"^^^  of  ^^^  caravan  of  the  year  before.     To- 

day Kansas  City  and  Santa  Fe  are  little 
more  than  twenty-four  hours  apart  by  rail,  and  we  read 
the  latest  news  from  both  places  in  the  morning  and 
evening  papers. 

Round  Mound,  standing  nearly  a  thousand  feet  above 
the  level  of  the  surrounding  plain,  in  what  is  now  New 
Mexico,  was  one  of  the  landmarks  along 
the  Trail.  At  that  point  the  caravan  had 
completed  about  three-fourths  of  the  journey  to  Santa  Fe. 
As  they  approached  the  Mound  some  of  the  party 
decided  to  ascend  it.  They  felt  certain  that  it  could 
not  be  more  than  half  a  mile  away,  but  they  had  to  go 
fully  three  miles  before  reaching  it.  This  remarkable 
deception    in    distance    is   characteristic  of    the   West.^ 

1.  Another  phenomenon  that  makes  the  traveler  in  a  dry  or 
desert  country  afraid  to  trust  his  eyes  is  the  mirage.  He  often  sees 
what  seem  to  be  lakes,  trees,  buildings,  cities,  only  to  find  on 
nearer  approach  that  they  all  disappear.  As  Kansas  has  come  under 
cultivation  the  mirage  has  become  less  frequent,  but  it  is  still  seen 
in  the  western  part  of  the  State.  Here  is  a  description  of  one  seen 
in  early  Kansas: 

"  On  approaching  the  town  of  Lerny,  about  a  mile  and  a  quarter 
this  side,  we  found  the  whole  intermediate  space  between  us  and  the 
grove  of  trees  beyond  the  town  apparently  occupied  by  a  beautiful 
lake.  On  the  apparent  shore  next  to  ourselves  the  road  ran  down 
and  disappeared  in  the  lake,  as  did  the  fence  upon  one  side  of  the 
road,  while  the  placid  and  beautiful  water  extended  upon  the  right 
and  left,  until  lost  in  the  distance.  The  trees  in  the  distance  ap- 
peared to  be  immersed  for  half  their  length  in  the  lake,  as  if  growing 


KANSAS  AS  A   PATHWAY  41 

Nothing  of  particular  note  occurred  from  Round  Moimd 
to  the  end  of  the  journey. 

The  arrival  of  the  caravan  at  Santa  Fe  was  a  source  of 
excitement  for  both  the  traders  and  the  city  and  was  cel- 
ebrated with  much  festivity.  The  traders 
SanuFcf  ^^^  entered  what  was  in  those  days  a 

foreign  country  and  had  to  pay  duties 
on  their  goods  at  the  custom  house.  Then  came  the 
business  of  selling  these  goods  to  those  who  had  come 
in  from  the  surrounding  country  to  buy,  after  which  the 
traders,  or  freighters  as  they  were  often  called,  prepared 
for  the  long  return  journey,  planning  to  finish  the  round 
trip  before  the  winter  began.  This  was  but  one  of  many 
trips  made  over  the  Santa  Fe  Trail. 

There  was  a  war  between  the  United  States  and  Mex- 
ico in  1846-'48.  The  trouble  between  the  two  countries 
Travel  across  checked  the  Santa  Fe  trade  between  the 
Kansas  during  years  1843  and  1850,  but  even  under 
®       ®  these  circumstances  there  was  much  travel 

across  Kansas  during  the  '40's.^  There  were  four  principal 
classes  of  travelers:  soldiers,  Oregon  emigrants,  Mor- 
mons, and  California  gold  seekers. 

The  war  with  Mexico  broke  out  in  1846,  and  many  of 

the  United  States  soldiers  were  sent  to  that  country  by 

way  of  the  Santa  Fe  Trail.  This  in- 
The  soldiers  j  ^.i.     x         i  ^u 

creased  the  travel  across  the  prairies. 

The  remote  unsettled  region  in  the  Northwest,  known 

in  the  water.  Even  the  reflection  of  the  trees,  and  of  the  clouds 
above,  was  distinctly  visible.  We  approached  the  vision  and  it  van- 
ished." 

1.  Because  of  the  increasing  migration  westward  the  National 
Government  decided  to  send  out  expeditions  for  the  purpose  of  dis- 
covering the  best  routes  across  the  mountains  to  the  Pacific.  John 
C.  Fremont  was  selected  for  this  task,  and  between  1842  and  1850 
he  made  four  journeys  across  the  plains.  Among  the  scouts  who 
acted  as  his  guides  was  the  famous  hunter  and  trapper,  and  Indian 
fighter,  Kit  Carson. 


42  A   HISTORY   OF   KANSAS 

as  Oregon,  was  soon  to  become  the  home  of  civihzed  peo- 
ple.    In  1842  wagon  trains  of  emigrants 
settlers^^^"  began  to  undertake  the  long  and  weary- 

journey  to  that  far-off  country.  Others 
soon  followed,  and  during  the  next  few  years  many  thou- 
sands of  people  settled  in  the  Oregon  country. 

In  those  days  the  Mormon  Church  had  not  been  long 
established,  but  their  beliefs  had  brought  the  Mormons 
r^,    j^  into  trouble  with  the  people  aroimd  them 

and  with  the  Government,  and  they  had 
been  forced  to  move  several  times.  The  last  time  was  in 
1845,  when  they  left  Nauvoo,  Illinois,  and  began  the  long 
and  perilous  journey  to  the  valley  of  Great  Salt  Lake,  in 
which  region  the  main  body  of  them  remains  to-day. 

In   1848   a  man   named   James   Marshall,   who   was 

running  a  sawmill  near  the  present  site  of  Sacramento, 

California,  discovered  shining  particles  of 

"Forty-niners"      ^^^^   ^^   ^^^   "^^^^   ^^^^'    ^^^    ^^   ^^   ^^^^ 
found  that  there  were  rich  gold  fields  in 

that  part  of  the  country.  The  news  spread,  not  rapidly 
as  it  would  to-day,  for  there  were  no  railroad  or  telegraph 
lines  west  of  the  Mississippi  River  and  only  a  few  east 
of  it,  but  within  a  short  time  the  whole  country  and  even 
Europe  had  heard  of  the  California  gold  fields,  and  i)eople 
from  all  parts  of  the  world  began  to  make  their  way 
to  the  Pacific  coast.  Some  went  by  water  but  more  of 
them  made  the  journey  overland.  Long  lines  of  wagons, 
or  prairie  schooners  as  they  were  called,  woimd  their 
way  across  the  plains  and  over  the  mountains  to  Cali- 
fornia. It  is  estimated  that  ninety  thousand  people 
passed  through  Kansas  on  their  way  to  California  during 
the  two  years  1848  and  1849,  a  few  of  them  to  gain  wealth, 
but  thousands  to  be  disappointed,  and  many  to  perish 
on  the  way. 


KANSAS  AS  A  PATHWAY  43 

The  Oregon  settlers,  the  Mormons,  and  the  gold  seek- 
ers entered  Kansas  at  or  near  Atchison,  Leavenworth,  St. 
Joseph,  or  Westport,  and  moved  toward 
xl'a^il^"^^^'*"  the  northwest,  crossed  the  border  mto  Ne- 

braska, and  went  on  across  the  mountains. 
The  road  worn  by  this  westward-moving  stream  of  emi- 
grants was  known  as  the  Oregon  Trail,  though  it  was 
sometimes  called  the  Mormon  Trail,  and  more  often  the 
California  Road.  For  two  thousand  miles  the  Oregon 
Trail  stretched  away  through  an  utter  wilderness,  and 
every  mile  of  it  came  to  be  the  scene  of  hardship  and 
suffering,  of  battle,  or  of  death.  It  was  one  of  the  most 
remarkable  highways  in  history.  It  had  several  branches, 
and  in  many  places  it  followed  different  routes  at  different 
times.  The  largest  number  of  travelers  over  this  Trail 
entered  Kansas  at  Westport  and  followed  for  a  short 
distance  the  Santa  Fe  Trail.  Near  the  present  town  of 
Gardner  stood  a  signboard  on  which  were  the  words, 
"Road  to  Oregon."  At  this  point  the  two  historic  high- 
ways divided.  It  has  been  said  that,  *' never  before  nor 
since  has  so  simple  an  announcement  pointed  the  way  to 
so  long  and  hard  a  journey." 

SUMMARY 

The  Santa  Fe  Trail  was  a  great  road  about  775  miles 
long,  beginning  successively  at  the  Missouri  towns,  Frank- 
lin, Independence,  and  Westport,  and  extending  westward 
to  Santa  Fe.  Four  hundred  miles  of  its  length  were  in 
Kansas.  Travel  began  in  1822  for  the  purpose  of  trading 
with  Mexico.  The  first  merchandise  was  carried  on  pack 
mules,  but  wagons  began  to  be  used  in  1824.  The  traders 
experienced  much  trouble  with  the  Indians,  and  in  1829 
they  began  going  together  in  big  caravans  for  protec- 
tion. The  gathering  place  was  Council  Grove,  where  they 
organized  and  started.  A  few  of  the  well-known  sit^ 
along  the  Trail  were  Pawnee  Rock,  Ash  Creek,  Pawnee 


44  A   HISTORY   OF   KANSAS 

Fork,  and  The  Caches.  At  Cimarron  Crossing  the  Trail 
divided.  The  northern  branch  followed  the  Arkansas 
and  crossed  the  mountains  over  practically  the  same 
route  as  that  followed  by  the  Santa  Fe  Railway  to-day. 
The  southern  branch  was  the  cut-off  across  the  desert. 
Another  historic  highway  was  the  Oregon  Trail,  sometimes 
called  the  Mormon  Trail  and  sometimes  the  California 
Road.     This  Trail  crossed  the  northeast  corner  of  Kansas. 

REFERENCES 

Inman,  The  Old  Santa  Fe  Trail. 
I      Parrish,  The  Great  Plains, 
y       Pamphlet  by  Historical  Society,  Santa  Fe  Trail. 

Prentis,  History  of  Kansas,  pp.  42-49. 

Gregg,  Commerce  of  the  Prairies. 

Blackmar,  Kansas,  vol.  ii,  p.  645. 

Andreas,  History  of  Kansas,  p.  54. 

Historical  Collections,  vol.  viii,  p.  137;  vol.  ix,  p.  552;  vol.  xii, 
pp.  253-269. 

Hunt,  California  the  Golden. 

Aplington,  Pilgrims  of  the  Plains.    (A  novel.) 

QUESTIONS 

1.  What  part  of  the  United  States  did  Mexico  own  a  hundred 
years  ago? 

2.  Describe  the  city  of  Santa  Fe.     How  did  trade  first  begin 
with  Santa  Fe? 

3.  Tell  about  the  journey  of  Captain  Becknell. 

4.  Discuss  the  use  of  pack  mules  on  the  Trail.     When  were 
wagons  first  used? 

5.  What  was  the  attitude  of  the  Indians  and  the  traders  toward 
each  other? 

6.  What  places  were  in  turn  the  starting  point  of  the  traders? 

7.  What  supplies  were  usually  taken? 

8.  How  did  Council  Grove  get  its  name?    Of  what  importance 
was  the  place? 

9.  Who  was  Josiah  Gregg? 

10.  Describe  the  organization  of  the  caravan.    The  starting. 

11.  What  occurred  when  buffalo  were  sighted? 

12.  What  is  told  of  Pawnee  Rock? 

13.  How  was  camp  formed  at  Ash  Creek? 


KANSAS  AS  A   PATHWAY  45 

14.  Describe   The    Caches.      How   did    this    place   receive   its 
name? 

15.  Where  did  the  Trail  divide?    Describe  each  route. 

16.  What  experience  did  the  travelers  have  with  the  Indians? 

17.  Explain  the  occurrence  at  Round  Mound. 

18.  Describe  the  arrival  of  the  caravan  at  Santa  Fe. 

19.  Discuss  the  Santa  Fe  trade  during  the  '40 's. 

20.  Name  the  classes  of  travelers  who  crossed  Kansas  in  the 
'40 's,  and  give  an  account  of  each. 

21.  Name  and  describe  the  trail  made  by  these  travelers. 


CHAPTER  V 

KANSAS  AS  AN  INDIAN  COUNTRY 

During  the  years  when  the  white  men  were  traveUng 

back  and  forth  across   Kansas  they  were  not  making 

Kansas  settlements  here.    The  country  remained 

belonged  to  in  the  undisputed  possession   of  the  In- 

the  Indians  ^-^^^^      rj.^^   ^^^^^   ^^^   ^j^   ^^^  ^^^  .^ 

as  yet.  They  looked  upon  these  vast  prairies,  not  as 
a  resource,  but  as  so  much  land  to  be  crossed  in  reach- 
ing places  farther  west.  But  changing  conditions  in  the 
states  east  of  the  Mississippi  River  made  people  begin  to 
look  upon  Kansas  in  a  different  light.  The  country  there 
was  becoming  thickly  settled  and  the  people  wanted  the 
lands  of  the  eastern  Indians. 

Soon  after  the  Louisiana  purchase  was  made  people 
began  to  talk  of  an  Indian  reserve,  of  a  state  set  aside 
Removal  of  ^^^  *^^  Indians,  and  it  was  believed  that 

eastern  Indians     these  western   prairies  would   be  useful 
o    ansas  ^^^  ^^^j^  ^  purpose.     Nothing  definite  was 

done,  however,  until  1825,  when  the  National  Govern- 
ment began  the  "removal  policy.''  The  eastern  part  of 
Kansas  was  occupied  by  two  tribes  of  Indians,  the 
Kanzas,  or  Kaws  as  they  are  often  called,  north  of 
the  Kansas  River,  and  the  Osages  south  of  it.  In  1825 
the  National  Government  made  treaties  with  these  two 
tribes.  Under  the  provisions  of  these  treaties  each  tribe 
retained  only  a  small  part  of  its  territory,  the  rest  being 
ceded  to  the  Government.  In  return,  the  Indians  were  to 
receive  certain  annual  payments   and  were  to  be  sup- 

(46) 


KANSAS   AS  AN   INDIAN   COUNTRY 


47 


plied  with  cattle,  hogs,  and 
farming  implements.  The  Gov- 
ernment was  also  to  provide 
them  with  blacksmiths  and 
with  teachers  of  agriculture. 
With  these  two  tribes  restricted 
to  their  reservations,  a  large 
part  of  eastern  Kansas  was 
left  to  be  apportioned  into  res- 
ervations for  Indians  from  the 
East.  In  1830  Congress  passed 
an  act  setting  aside  an  Indian 
country,  which  included  east- 
em  Kansas.  Then  the  re- 
moval policy  was  carried  out.  Under  this  arrangement 
the  Government  made  treaties  with  the  various  eastern 
tribes  by  which  they  gave  up  their  lands  in  exchange  for 
certain   tracts  in  the  Indian    country.     The    Shawnees 


1 

^^^^^^^B^^N«2^^«^^BI 

i 

^Hwv       -v^^ 

An  Indian  in  War  Dress. 


-ewe  R  p  K  s-g 


azEJ] 


I  -?  35 


2^22^ 


Indian  Reservations  in  Kansas. 


48  A  HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 

had  come  in  1825,  and  during  the  ten  or  twelve  years  fol- 
lowing 1830  about  seventeen  tribes  were  located  on  res- 
ervations in  Kansas.  Among  these  were  the  lowas,  Sacs 
and  Foxes,  Kickapoos,  Delawares,  Chippewas,  Pottawat- 
omies,  Wyandottes,  and  Miamis.  By  1850  there  was 
not  a  tribe  left  east  of  the  Mississippi  River.  The  Indians 
had  all  been  moved  to  these  western  plains,  and  no  white 
man  could  settle  on  any  of  the  reservations  without 
the  consent  of  the  Indians. 

According  to  the  treaties  the  Indians  were  promised 
their  land  ''so  long  as  grass  should  grow  or  water  run." 
But  it  soon  developed  that  the  white  men 
^TomKJ^nl^r^^  wanted  Kansas  also.  In  1854  we  find  the 
tribes  being  again  transferred,  this  time 
to  the  Indian  Territory,  now  Oklahoma,  where  the  rem- 
nants of  the  various  tribes  still  remain.^ 

Although  Kansas  was  not  used  during  those  early  years 
to  make  homes  for  white  settlers,  a  few  hundred  people 
came  here.  They  were  of  three  different  classes ;  fur 
traders,  missionaries,  and  soldiers. 

It  is  impossible  to  say  when  the  first  hunters  and 

trappers  came  to  these  western  plains,  for  they  were  gen- 

^^  ^  ^  J  erally  obscure  men  and  little  was  known 
The  fur  traders        -    .  i    .  .  i         .  v    j.    j.i 

of  their   commgs  and  gomgs,   but  they 

were  the  real  pathfinders  of  the  West.  There  are  rec- 
ords of  fur  traders  here  in  the  very  early  years  of  the 
nineteenth  century,  and  they  gradually  went  farther  and 
farther  into  the  vast  wilderness.  The  streams  of  travel 
across  Kansas  in  the  '40's  followed  paths  that  had  been 
pointed  out  by  the  fur  traders. 

1.  The  fact  that  Kansas  was  once  an  Indian  country  is  shown 
by  the  many  Indian  names  of  counties,  towns,  and  streams;  as, 
Topeka,  Pottawatomie,  Hiawatha,  Wyandotte,  Shawnee,  Chey- 
enne, Cherokee,  and  Kiowa. 


KANSAS  AS  AN   INDIAN   COUNTRY 


49 


The  fur  companies  established  many  trading  posts, 
which  served  as  forts  for  protection  against  the  Indians 

and  as  places  to 
which  hunters  and 
trappers  could 
bring  their  furs. 
Some  of  the  hunt- 
ers and  trappers 
were  employed  by 
the  fur  companies 
and  others  worked 
independently. 

Many  Indians 
also  engaged  in 
this  trade,  and 
often  they  were 
given  tobacco, 
whisky,  and  weap- 
ons in  exchange  for 
their  furs.  In  this 
way  much  of  the 
work  of  the  mis- 
sionaries was   un- 


\j//. 

>.t:,,*,*.,,i«^^.%22lr'j^'^ 

tl 

'    ,:^* 

if 

,  -  \**^B^B 

^,/C^!^- 

m 

K^^^^^^^H 

The  Indian  tepee,  made  of  poles  and  buffalo 
hides,  was  the  only  home  of  the  wander- 
ing tribes,  and  was  used  by  the  other 
tribes  when  on  hunting  trips. 


done.  In  the  earlier  years  the  hunters  and  trappers 
found  many  kinds  of  wild  animals  in  Kansas:  the  buffalo, 
the  wolf,  the  fox,  the  deer,  the  elk,  and  the  antelope,  and 
along  the  streams  the  beaver,  the  otter,  the  mink,  and 
the  muskrat.  Later,  the  main  supply  of  furs  came  from 
the  mountains,  and  the  whole  fur  trade  gradually  moved 
west  of  what  is  now  Kansas. 

The  attempt  to  civilize  the  Indian  began  in  the  days 
of  the  early  explorers,  and  it  was  on  Kansas  soil  that  the 
first  missionary's  life  was  lost  in  the  cause.  This  man  was 
Father  Padilla,  a  Jesuit,  who  came  with  Coronado  on  his 


50  A   HISTORY   OF   KANSAS 

journey  to  Quivira.  Father  Padilla  became  much  inter- 
Father  Padilla  ested  in  the  Quivira  Indians  and  remained 
the  first  mission-  to  do  missionary  work  among  them.  His 
ary  in  Kansas  preaching  was  of  short  duration,  however, 
for  he  was  soon  killed,  whether  by  the  Quiviras  or  some 
other  tribe  is  not  known. 

Centuries  later,  when  Kansas  became  a  part  of  the 
United  States  and  was  explored  and  traversed  by  white 
Kansas  mission-  ^^^'  missionaries  were  among  the  first 
aries  of  the  nine-  to  arrive.  They  came  to  instruct  the 
teenth  century  j^dians  in  the  Christian  religion  and  to 
persuade  them  to  adopt  the  customs  of  civilization. 

Of  the  many  who  came,  Rev.  Isaac  McCoy  probably 
deserves  first  mention.  He  had  spent  many  years  in 
work  among  the  Indians  and  strongly  urged  the  removal 
policy.  He  believed  that  if  they  could  live  in  a  separate 
state,  free  from  contact  with  the  white  race,  the  Indians 
could  be  civilized,  and  he  gave  his  life  to  this  work. 

Jotham  Meeker  and  his  wife  were  among  the  most 
devoted  of  the  missionaries,  but  there  were  many  others, 
both  men  and  women,  who  placed  the  welfare  of  human 
beings  above  mere  gain  and  who  endured  the  hardships 
of  life  among  the  savages  for  the  sake  of  the  good  they 
might  do. 

As  soon  as  the  eastern  Indians  were  removed  to  Kan- 
sas a  number  of  missions  were  established  by  Baptist, 
Methodist,  Presbyterian,  Friends,  and 
established  Catholic  churches.    The  work  of  the  mis- 

sionaries was  not  confined  to  religious  in- 
struction.   Schools  were  established,^  books  were  printed, 

1.  Among  the  schools  established  by  the  missions  three  have  con- 
tinued in  existence  and  have  developed  into  important  schools 
of  to-day:  Highland  College,  established  by  the  Presbyterians; 
St.  Mary's  College,  by  the  Catholics;  and  Ottawa  University,  by 
the  Baptists. 


KANSAS  AS  AN   INDIAN   COUNTRY 


51 


the  Indian  girls  were  taught  cooking  and  sewing,  and  the 
boys  were  taught  farming  and  such  trades  as  black- 
smithing  and  carpentering. 

The   most   noted    mission    in    Kansas   was   the    one 


Shawnee  Mission  as  first  built  in  1830.    In  1839  a  new  location  was 
selected  and  fine  new  buildings  constructed. 

established  by  the  Methodist  Church  for  the  Shawnee 
Indians  near  the  present  site  of  Kansas  City.  This 
mission  was  opened  in  1830  and  continued  its  work  for 
more  than  a  quarter  of  a  century.  It  had  a  large  tract  of 
land  and  good  buildings,  and  maintained  a  successful 
school.  Rev,  Thomas  Johnson,  who  took  a  prominent 
part  in  early  Kansas  affairs,  was  in  charge  of  the  mission. 

The  third  class  of  people  who  came  to  early  Kan- 
sas was  the  soldiers.  Their  presence  was  necessary  for 
the  protection  of  the  few  white  people 

e  so   lers         against  the  Indians.     Fort  Leavenworth 


52 


A   HISTORY   OF   KANSAS 


The  Camp  of  Instruction  held  each  year  at  Fort  Riley  on  that  part 
of  the  reservation  known  as  Pawnee  Flats.  Near  the  center  of 
the  view  is  the  old  Pawnee  Capitol. 


Pontoon  Bridge  at  Fort  Riley. 


KANSAS  AS  AN   INDIAN  COUNTRY 


53 


Above  is  the  Old  \\  m  j  t  ort  Leavenworth.  This  wall  is  all  that 
remains  of  the  original  Fort.  The  lower  picture  is  of  the  Main 
Parade  at  Fort  Leavenworth  at  the  present  time. 


was  established  by  the  National  Government  in  1827,  as 
headquarters  for  the  troops.  This  was  shortly  after  the 
beginning  of  the  Santa  Fe  trade.  During  the  '40's  this 
fort  was  used  as  a  base  of  supplies  for  the  soldiers  of  the 
Mexican  War,  and  as  an  outfitting  point  for  many  of  the 
California  gold  seekers  and  Mormon  emigrants.  Fort 
Leavenworth  is  to-day  one  of  the  most  important  of  the 


54  A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 

national  forts.  A  number  of  other  forts  were  established, 
among  them  Fort  Riley,  Fort  Dodge,  Fort  Scott,  and 
Fort  Hays,  but  all  of  these  have  been  abandoned  ex- 
cept Fort  Riley. 

Kansas  remained  in  possession  of  the  Indians  until 
1854,  when  it  was  organized  into  a  territory.     With  this 

Population  of        ^^^^  ^  ^^^  ^^^  began.     At  this  time  the 
pre-territorial        white  population  consisted  of  about  twelve 
^^^^^  hundred  people,  one  half  of  them  soldiers 

and  the  other  half  connected  with  the  trading  posts  and 
the  missions. 

SUMMARY 

When  the  country  that  is  now  Kansas  became  a  part  of 
the  United  States  it  was  occupied  by  four  tribes  of  Indians. 
In  1825  the  Kanza  and  Osage  tribes  ceded  a  large  part 
of  their  lands  to  the  Government  and  the  eastern  quarter 
of  the  State  was  made  a  part  of  the  Indian  country  by  the 
Act  of  1830.  Following  this  a  number  of  eastern  tribes 
were  removed  to  reservations  in  Kansas,  where  they 
remained  until  Kansas  was  organized  as  a  territory,  in 
1854,  when  they  were  moved  to  Indian  Territory,  now 
Oklahoma.  During  these  years  there  was  much  travel 
through  the  State,  but  up  to  1854  the  white  population 
numbered  only  about  twelve  hundred.  These  people 
were  of  three  classes;   traders,  missionaries,  and  soldiers. 

REFERENCES 

Prentis,  History  of  Kansas,  pp.  50-64. 

Andreas,  History  of  Kansas,  pp.  58-74. 

Gihon,  Geary  and  Kansas,  chap.  il. 

Inman,  The  Old  Santa  Fe  Trail. 

Elson,  History  of  the  United  States,  chap.  li. 

Kansas  Historical  Collections,  vol.  viii,  pp.  72,  171,  206,  250; 
vol.  IX,  p.  565;  vol.  x,  p.  327;  vol.  xi,  p.  333;  vol.  xii,  pp.  65,  183; 
vol.  IX,  p.  153. 

Holloway,  History  of  Kansas,  chap.  viil. 

Blackmar,  Kansas,  vol.  i,  pp.  655-703;  vol.  ii,  p.  291. 


KANSAS  AS  AN   INDIAN   COUNTRY  55 

QUESTIONS 

1.  What  use  did  the  white  people  make  of  Kansas  during  the 
first  half  of  the  nineteenth  century? 

2.  How  did  the  condition  of  the  Indians  here  differ  from  that  of 
the  Indians  in  the  East? 

3.  What  was  the  removal  policy?     Name  some  of  the  Indian 
tribes  brought  here.    What  promise  was  made  them? 

4.  Name  the  three  classes  of  white  people  who  came  to  Kansas 
during  this  period. 

5.  Who  was  Father  Padilla?    Name  some  of  the  missionaries. 
What  work  did  they  do? 

6.  Tell  of  the  fur  traders  and  their  relations  with  the  Indians. 

7.  Why  were  the  soldiers  here? 

8.  When  did  Kansas  cease  to  be  an  Indian  country? 


CHAPTER  VI 
KANSAS  ORGANIZED  AS  A  TERRITORY 

The  year  1854  is  an  important  one  in  the  history  of 
Kansas,  for  it  brings  to  a  close  the  period  during  which 
The  year  1854  ^^^  region  was  used  as  a  hunting  ground 
an  important  by  the  Indians  and  marks  the  beginning 
****®  of  its  use  as  a  home  for  white  people. 

The  white  settlers  did  not  come  in  peace  and  quiet;  the 
first  dozen  years  following  1854  were  filled  with  hatred, 
struggle,  and  bloodshed.  This  was  brought  about  by 
conditions  outside  of  Kansas.  As  we  have  seen,  twenty- 
five  years  earlier  Kansas  was  made  an  Indian  territory 
because  people  in  the  states  wanted  the  lands  of  the 
eastern  Indians.  In  1854  a  terrible  conflict  began  here 
because  there  was  a  division  between  the  North  and 
the  South  on  the  question  of  slavery. 

Slavery  had  existed  in  the  United  States  since  very 
early  colonial  days.  It  had  not  been  profitable  in  the 
Attitude  of  the  northern  states,  but  in  the  cotton  fields  of 
North  and  South  the  southem  plantations  slave  labor  was 
toward  slavery  .^^  demand,  and  its  use  after  the  inven- 
tion of  the  cotton  gin  had  increased  steadily  with  the 
passing  years.  The  Northerners  had  long  been  opposed 
to  slavery  and  made  every  effort  to  keep  it  from  spread- 
ing into  northern  and  western  territory,  while  the  South- 
erners were  just  as  determined  that  it  should  flourish 
and  that  it  should  be  extended  into  new  territory.  This 
difference  between  the  North  and  the  South  developed 
great  bitterness.  Neither  side  lost  any  opportunity  to 
take  advantage  of  the  other,  and  each  was  anxious  to 

(57) 


58  A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 

secure  a  majority  in  the  Senate  in  order  to  obtain  favor- 
able legislation.  This  matter  was  so  carefully  watched 
that  it  had  long  been  the  custom  to  keep  the  "balance  of 
power"  between  the  states;  that  is,  to  admit  free  and 
slave  states  alternately  so  as  to  keep  the  number  of  pro- 
slavery  and  free-state  senators  balanced.  The  North, 
because  of  its  more  rapid  growth  in  population,  had  long 
had  a  majority  in  the  Hoiise. 

Missouri  was  along  the  dividing  line  between  the  North 
and  the  South,  and  when  it  asked  to  be  admitted  to 
The  Missouri  ^^^  Union  there  followed  a  long  debate 
Compromise,  in  Congress  as  to  whether  it  should  come 
^^^^  in  slave  or  free.     The  question  was  finally 

settled  by  the  Missouri  Compromise,  which  provided  that 
Missouri  might  come  in  as  a  slave  state  but  that  all  the 
rest  of  the  territory  included  in  the  Louisiana  Purchase 
and  lying  north  of  36°  30',  the  line  forming  the  south- 
em  boundary  of  Missouri,  should  be  forever  free.  In 
other  words,  slavery  was  to  be  forever  excluded  from 
Kansas  and  the  territory  lying  north  of  it. 

This  was  in  1820,  about  the  time  of  the  beginning  of 
the  Santa  Fe  trade.  During  the  years  when  Kansas  was 
Slavery  trouble  ^^  Indian  country  and  was  traversed 
brings  on  the  by  countless  caravans  the  country  re- 
Civil  War  mained  bound  by  the  terms  of  this  com- 

promise. But  all  this  time  the  feeling  of  animosity 
between  the  North  and  the  South  was  growing  more 
intense;  northern  churches  and  newspapers  denounced 
the  evils  of  slavery,  free-state  and  abolition  parties 
developed,  thousands  of  slaves  were  assisted  in  making 
their  escape  through  the  North  to  Canada  in  spite  of  the 
strict  fugitive  slave  law,  and  there  was  bitter  strife  in 
Congress  between  the  free-state  and  the  slave-state  mem- 
bers.    The  relations  between  the  North  and  the  South 


KANSAS  ORGANIZED  AS  A  TERRITORY  59 

were  becoming  more  and  more  strained.  The  time  was 
rapidly  approaching  when  the  differences  between  the  two 
sections  were  to  be  settled  by  a  great  war. 

The  Civil  War  began  in  1861,  the  same  year  in  which 
Kansas  became  a  state;  but  seven  years  earlier,  in  1854, 
The  conflict  Congress    had    passed    a    measure    that 

brought  into  brought  the  slavery  trouble  into  Kansas 
Kansas  in  1854      ^^^  ^^^^  ^^^  g^^  ^j^^  ^^^^j^  ground  in 

the  great  national  struggle  over  the  slavery  question. 

The  measure  passed  by  Congress  that  played  such  an 
important  part  in  the  history  of  Kansas  and  of  the  Nation 
The  Kansas-  ^^  known  as  the  Kansas-Nebraska  Bill, 
Nebrasica  Bill,  and  was  the  work  of  Senator  Stephen  A. 
**^  Douglas,  of  Illinois.    It  provided  that  the 

two  territories,  Kansas  and  Nebraska,  should  be  organ- 
ized, and  that  the  question  of  slavery  should  be  left  for 
the  people  of  each  territory  to  decide  for  themselves.  This 
method  of  settling  the  question  was  known  as  "popular 
sovereignty."  Because  the  settlers  were  often  called 
squatters  it  was  frequently  called  "squatter  sovereignty." 

Kansas  and  Nebraska  were  part  of  the  territory  which, 
according  to  the  terms  of  the  Missouri  Compromise,  was 
to  be  forever  free,  but  under  the  Douglas 
t^e'^Bill*'"  "^^  Bill  ^^^y  were  to  become  either  slave  or 
free  as  the  people  who  settled  the  terri- 
tories might  decide.  When  this  Bill  was  introduced  into 
Congress  it  raised  a  storm  of  indignation  among  those 
opposed  to  slavery,  and  the  debate  which  ensued  lasted 
for  months.  The  whole  North  was  aroused  and  poured 
forth  objection  and  protest,  but  to  no  avail.  The  Bill 
was  passed  May  30,  1854. 

The  Kansas-Nebraska  Bill  meant  that  the  Missouri 
Compromise  had  been  repealed  and  that  there  was  no 
longer  any  boundary  line    against   slavery.     It    meant 


60  A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 

that  Kansas  and  Nebraska  were  offered  as  prizes  to  be 

contended  for  by  the  free  and  the  slave 
Result  of  the        ^^^^^^^     rpj^^  g^^^j^  ^^j^^  ..  You  may  have 

Nebraska;  Kansas  is  ours."  The  North 
refused  to  recognize  such  a  division  of  spoils  and  in- 
sisted that  both  territories  had  been  carved  from  free 
soil  and  should  both  come  into  the  Union  free.  Both  North 
and  South  desired  to  secure  Kansas,  and  each  side  urged 
that  as  many  as  possible  of  its  own  people  should  emi- 
grate to  the  new  Territory.  It  could  scarcely  be  expected 
that,  under  such  circumstances,  Kansas  would  be  left 
for  gradual  and  peaceful  settlement.  The  result  was 
that  the  scene  of  strife  was  transferred  from  Congress 
to  these  western  prairies,  and  from  that  time  until  the 
admission  of  the  Territory  as  a  state  the  conflict  be- 
tween the  forces  of  freedom  and  slavery  was  waged  here. 
It  must  be  remembered  that  at  this  time  Kansas  was 
an  Indian  country;  that  many  of  the  eastern  tribes  had 
Indians  removed  gi^en  up  their  lands  in  exchange  for 
from  Kansas        lands  here  which  had  been  promised  to 

them  forever.  Nevertheless,  the  Indians 
were  removed  from  Kansas,  many  of  them  at  once  and 
others  more  leisurely.  They  were  taken  to  what  has 
since  become  Oklahoma,  where  many  of  them  still  live. 
In  this  way  room  was  made  for  the  white  settlers  to 
enter  Kansas. 

SUMMARY 

For  many  years  there  had  been  bitter  feeling  between 
the  North  and  the  South  on  the  slavery  question.  In  1820 
the  Missouri  Compromise  was  passed.  This  measure  pro- 
vided that  all  the  Louisiana  Purchase  lying  north  of  the 
southern  boundary  of  Missouri,  except  Missouri  itself, 
should  be  forever  free.  This  agreement  was  observed 
until  the  passage  of  the  Kansas-Nebraska  Bill  in  1854. 


KANSAS  ORGANIZED  AS  A  TERRITORY  61 

This  bill  provided  that  the  settlers  of  each  of  these  terri- 
tories should  decide  whether  it  was  to  be  made  slave  or 
free.  Each  side  was  determined  to  win  Kansas,  and  as  a 
result  the  slavery  struggle  was  brought  here.  In  order 
to  make  room  for  settlers  the  Indians  were  moved  to 
Indian  Territory,  now  known  as  Oklahoma. 

REFERENCES 

Prentis,  History  of  Kansas,  pp.  63-73. 
Spring,  Kansas,  pp.  2-16. 
Andreas,  History  of  Kansas,  pp.  81-82. 
Holloway,  History  of  Kansas,  chap.  VI. 
Tuttle,  History  of  Kansas. 
Lamed,  History  for  Ready  Reference. 
Gihon,  Geary  in  Kansas,  chap.  ill. 
Historical  Collections,  vol.  ix,  p.  115;  vol.  vill,  r.  86. 
Foster,  A  History  of  the  United  States,  pp.  326-329. 
Muzzey,  American  History,  379-412. 

Hodder,  Genesis  of  the  Kansas-Nebraska  Act,  in  Proceedings  of 
the  State  Historical  Society  of  Wisconsin,  1912,  pp.  69-86. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  Why  is  1854  an  important  date  in  Kansas  history? 

2.  What  great  national  question  affected  Kansas  at  that  time? 
Explain. 

3.  Explain  the  attitude  of  the  North  and  the  South  toward 
slavery. 

4.  What  was  meant  by  the  "balance  of  power"? 

5.  Give  the  provisions  and  the  date  of  the  Missouri  Compromise. 
How  did  this  Compromise  affect  Kansas? 

6.  What  did  the  Kansas-Nebraska  Bill  provide?    Give  the  atti- 
tude of  the  North  and  the  South  toward  it. 

7.  How  did  this  Bill  affect  the  Missouri  Compromise?   What  was 
the  result  in  Kansas? 

8.  What  was  done  with  the  Indians  in  Kansas? 


62  A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 


THE  SONG  OF  THE  KANSAS  EMIGRANT 

We  cross  the  prairies  as  of  old 

The  Pilgrims  crossed  the  sea, 
To  make  the  West  as  they  the  East 

The  homestead  of  the  free. 

Chorus: 

The  homestead  of  the  free,  my  boys, 
The  homestead  of  the  free, 
To  make  the  West  as  they  the  East 
The  homestead  of  the  free. 

We  go  to  rear  a  wall  of  men 

On  Freedom's  southern  line 
And  plant  beside  the  cotton  tree 

The  rugged  northern  pine. 

We  're  flowing  from  our  native  hills, 

As  our  free  rivers  flow; 
The  blessings  of  our  mother-land 

Is  on  us  as  we  go. 

We  go  to  plant  her  common  schools 

On  distant  prairie  swells. 
And  give  the  Sabbaths  of  the  wild 

The  music  of  her  bells. 

Upbearing  like  the  ark  of  old. 

The  Bible  in  her  van. 
We  go  to  test  the  truth  of  God 

Against  the  fraud  of  man. 

No  pause,  nor  rest,  save  where  the  streams 

That  feed  the  Kansas  run. 
Save  where  our  pilgrim  gonfalon 

Shall  flout  the  setting  sun. 

We  '11  tread  the  prairies  as  of  old 

Our  fathers  sailed  the  sea; 
And  make  the  West  as  they  the  East 

The  homestead  of  the  free. 

— John  G.  Whittibr. 


CHAPTER  VII 

THE  COMING  OF  THE  SETTLERS 

Kansas  in  1854  was,  to  most  people,  only  a  name,  a  part 
of  the  great  desert  in  the  Far  West,  an  Indian  country. 
Many  of  those  who  had  crossed  it  in  the 
kanswInTssI  California  emigration  had  been  impressed 
with  the  beauty  and  richness  of  the 
country  and  had  written  back  glowing  accounts  of  it. 
Some  of  them  had  returned  from  the  coast,  and  were  now 
numbered  among  our  early  settlers.  When  its  organi- 
zation as  a  territory  brought  it  into  such  prominence, 
knowledge  of  Kansas  soon  became  more  general. 

The  people  of  the  South  felt  confident  that  they  could 
make  it  a  slave  state,  for  they  had  gained  many  victories 
in  Congress,  and  the  President,  Franklin 
of  the  Smfth  Pierce,  was  in  sympathy  with  them.  More- 
over, they  were  closer  to  Kansas  than  were 
the  northern  people,  and  the  only  state  touching  Kansas 
was  the  slave  state,  Missouri. 

The  people  of  the  North,  however,  possessed  one  very 
important  advantage.  The  population  of  the  South  con- 
sisted largely  of  plantation  owners  and 
of  the  North  ^^^^^  slaves,  and  it  was  not  an  easy  matter 
for  these  men  to  leave  their  property  or  to 
take  it  into  a  new  and  untried  country.  On  the  other 
hand,  the  North  was  a  land  of  small  farms  and  shops  and 
many  laborers.  Moreover,  there  was  much  foreign  im- 
migration into  the  United  States  in  those  years,  and  since 

(63) 


64  A   HISTORY   OF   KANSAS 

the  employment  of  slaves  left  no  place  in  the  South  for 
white  laborers,  most  of  the  immigrants  entered  the  north- 
ern states,  and  added  to  the  number  of  those  who  were 
ready  and  anxious  to  go  farther  west.  Consequently  many 
more  settlers  came  into  Kansas  from  the  North  than  from 
the  South,  but  the  Southerners  tried  to  overcome  this 
handicap  in  other  ways. 

The  plan  of  the  South  was  to  use  Missouri  as  the  step- 
ping-stone to  Kansas.  Immediately  following  the  passage 
of  the  Kansas- Nebraska  Bill  a  number  of 
Sie  Missoifrians  Missourians  came  over  into  Kansas  and 
took  as  claims  large  tracts  of  the  best 
lands,  in  some  cases  not  even  waiting  for  the  removal  cf 
the  Indians.  Settlers  who  asked  for  claims  were  required 
to  build  houses  and  to  use  the  land  for  homes  for  a  certain 
length  of  time.  While  some  of  the  Missourians  met  these 
requirements,  many  of  them  did  not  come  here  to  live. 
They  notched  trees,  or  posted  notices,  or  laid  rails  on  the 
ground  in  the  shape  of  a  house,  or  in  some  other  way 
indicated  their  claims,  and  returned  to  their  homes  in 
Missouri,  coming  back  only  to  vote  or  to  fight  when  it 
seemed  to  them  necessary.  While  in  Kansas,  however, 
they  held  a  meeting  at  which  it  was  resolved  that:  ''We 
recognize  slavery  as  always  existing  in  this  Territory," 
and,  ''We  will  afford  protection  to  no  abolitionists  as 
settlers  of  Kansas  Territory." 

The  free-state  people  could  not  step  over  a  boundary 
line  and  be  in  Kansas.  They  lived  a  long  way  off,  the  trip 
Handicap  to  ^^^  ^^^^  ^^^  expensive,  and  little  was 
northern  known  of  the  new  Territory.    It  was  a  land 

emigration  without  homes  or  towns,  churches,  schools, 

or  newspapers,  and  the  Northerners  knew  that  people 
would  hesitate  to  start  to  Kansas  under  all  these  diffi- 
culties. 


THE  COMING  OF   THE   SETTLERS  65 

So  it  came  about  that  even  while  the  Kansas-Nebraska 
Bill  was  pending  in  Congress  a  Massachusetts  man  named 
The  New  Eng-  ^^^  Thayer  had  thought  out  a  plan  for 
land  Emigrant  assisting  and  encouraging  the  people  to 
Aid  Company  undertake  the  long  journey.  His  plan  was 
to  form  a  company  for  the  purpose  of  inducing  and  or- 
ganizing emigration  to  Kansas  and  reducing  the  expense 
and  hardship  involved.  This  was  not  to  be  done  as 
charity,  but  was  to  be  put  on  a  business  basis.  Thayer 
aroused  public  interest  in  his  plan  by  constant  writing 
and  speaking,  and  since  the  people  were  ready  to  listen  to 
whatever  promised  to  aid  in  making  Kansas  a  free  state, 
money  enough  was  soon  raised  to  organize  a  company, 
called  the  New  England  Emigrant  Aid  Company.  It 
gathered  and  published  information  concerning  the  new 
country  and  organized  emigrants  into  large  parties  in 
order  to  make  the  journey  more  pleasant,  to  reduce  ex- 
pense, and  to  lessen  danger.  Competent  guides  were  sent 
with  the  parties.  The  company  established  schools,  news- 
papers, mills,  hotels,  and  other  improvements  that  tended 
to  lessen  the  hardships  of  the  pioneers  and  to  further  the 
development  of  the  new  Territory.  Several  similar  or- 
ganizations were  formed,  but  none  of  them  was  so  well 
known  nor  so  efficient  as  the  New  England  Emigrant  Aid 
Company. 

Hundreds  of  people  came  here  under  the  management 
of  these  companies,  but  probably  the  greatest  service  the 
Work  of  the  companies  performed  was  that  of  giving  an 

emigrant  aid  immense  amount  of  publicity  and  adver- 
companies  tising  to  Kansas.    Newspapers  were  filled 

with  descriptions  of  the  loveliness,  the  fertility,  and  the 
future  greatness  of  the  new  Territory,  and  people  were 
urged  to  go  to  Kansas  at  once,  both  to  secure  the  advan- 
tages of  the  country  and  to  help  in  saving  it  from  slavery. 


66  A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 

In  this  way  interest  and  enthusiasm  were  aroused  over 
the  whole  North,  but  for  every  one  who  came  in  one  of 
the  emigrant  aid  parties  there  were  many  who  came  inde- 
pendently, especially  from  the  states  farther  west  than 
New  England — Pennsylvania,  Ohio,  Indiana,  Illinois,  and 
Iowa. 

The  organizations  in  the  North  aroused  much  bitter 

feeling  in  the  South,  and  a  reward  was  offered  for  the 

capture  of  Eli  Thayer.     The  South  soon 

organizations        formed  organizations  too,  some  of  them 

being  known  as  Blue  Lodges,  Social  Bands* 

and  Sons  of  the  South. 

As  has  been  stated,  the  Missourians  came  into  Kansas, 
immediately  after  the  passage  of  the  Kansas-Nebraska  Bill 
The  coming  of  ^^  May  30,  but  the  free-state  people 
the  free-state  were  not  far  behind,  for  on  the  first  day  of 
se    ers  August,  just  two  months  later,  the  first 

party  of  emigrants  sent  out  by  the  New  England  Emi- 
grant Aid  Company  reached  the  Territory.  Even  these 
were  not  the  first  free-state  men  to  arrive;  a  few  who  had 
come  independently  were  already  here. 

This  first  party  consisted  of  only  twenty-nine  men. 
It  had  been  organized  with  some  difficulty,  for  coming  to 
Kansas  was  looked  upon  as  a  dangerous 
of  sett^ler^^'*^  undertaking.  Hundreds  of  people  gathered 
to  bid  these  men  farewell  as  they  started 
on  their  long  journey  to  take  part  in  the  great  conflict 
between  freedom  and  slavery.  There  were  many  who 
would  not  have  been  surprised  had  the  whole  party  been 
murdered  on  their  arrival  in  Kansas,  but  when  nothing 
of  the  kind  happened  others  took  courage  and  more  par- 
ties soon  followed. 

The  pioneer  party  reached  St.  Louis  by  railroad,  where 


THE  COMING  OP   THE   SETTLERS  67 

they  boarded  a  steamboat  and  came  up  the  Missouri  River 
They  reach  the  ^  Kansas  City,  then  a  town  of  only  three 
present  site  of  or  four  hundred  people.  There  they  pur- 
Lawrence  chased  an  ox  team  to  transport  their  bag- 
gage, and  on  a  Saturday  evening  set  out  on  foot  into 
Kansas.  By  Tuesday  noon  they  reached  the  present  site 
of  Lawrence,  where  they  pitched  their  tents  on  a  big 
flat-topped  hill.  To-day  the  great  buildings  of  the  Uni- 
versity of  Kansas  stand  on  this  hill,  which  is  still  called 
Mount  Oread, ^  the  name  given  it  by  this  first  party  of 
pioneers.  The  weather  was  extremely  'hot;  a  drouth 
had  parched  the  earth  and  prairie  fires  had  destroyed  the 
grass,  but  the  pioneers  were  not  discouraged.  They  staked 
out  claims  in  the  surrounding  coimtry  and  began  prepara- 
tions for  the  future. 

In  a  short  time  the  second  party  arrived.    It  was  imder 
the  direction  of  Dr.  Charles  Robinson  and  Samuel  C. 

Pomeroy,  who  were  leaders  in  the  free- 
Jiy  Mrivts         s*^^  ^^^  during  the  whole  Territorial 

struggle.  This  party  was  much  larger, 
and  part  of  its  members  were  women  and  children.  The 
town  was  now  laid  out,  organized,  and  named  Lawrence.^ 
On  the  arrival  of  this  party  a  boarding  house  was  estab- 
lished by  two  of  the  women.  It  was  thus  described  by  a 
writer  of  that  time:  "In  the  open  air,  on  some  logs  of  wood, 
two  rough  boards  were  laid  across  for  a  table,  and  on  wash- 
tubs,  kegs,  and  blocks  the  boarders  were  seated  around  it." 
A  short  time  later  a  hotel  was  opened.  It  was  constructed 
by  driving  into  the  ground  two  long  rows  of  poles,  which 
were  brought  together  at  the  top  and  the  sides  thatched 

1.  Named  after  Mount  Oread  Seminary  at  Worcester,  Mass.,  of 
which  Eli  Thayer  was  the  founder  and  proprietor. 

2.  Named  in  honor  of  Amos  A.  Lawrence,  of  Boston,  an  active 
member  of  the  Emigrant  Aid  Company. 


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THE  COMING  OF  THE  SETTLERS  71 

the  Kansas  River  at  the  mouth  of  the  Big  Blue,  was  for 
the  first  few  months  called  Boston.  On  the  arrival  of  a 
party  of  seventy-five  people  from  Cincinnati,  Ohio,  the 
name  was  changed  to  Manhattan.  This  party  made  the 
entire  trip  from  Cincinnati  to  Manhattan  by  boat. 

SUMMARY 

When  Kansas  Territory  was  organized  little  was  known 
of  it,  but,  because  it  was  wanted  by  both  the  North  and  the 
South,  knowledge  of  Kansas  spread  rapidly.  The  South 
had  the  support  of  every  branch  of  the  National  Govern- 
ment and  the  added  advantage  that  the  only  state  touch- 
ing Kansas  was  proslavery.  The  advantage  of  the  North 
lav  in  the  fact  that  it  had  a  much  larger  number  of  people 
who  were  free  to  move  to  a  new  country.  The  proslavery 
Missourians  came  in  at  once  and  took  claims.  A  few  free- 
state  people  came  within  a  month,  and  in  two  months 
the  emigrant  aid  parties  began  to  arrive.  The  fact  that 
many  Missourians  had  staked  out  claims  and  gone  back 
home  led  to  numerous  claim  disputes  and  caused  the 
organization  of  the  Actual  Settlers'  Association.  By  the 
time  winter  had  come  four  emigrant  aid  parties  had  ar- 
rived at  Lawrence,  many  settlers  were  living  on  their 
claims,  and  several  towns  had  been  started  by  each  side, 

REFERENCES 

Spring,  Kansas,  pp.  29-40. 

Brooks,  The  Boy  Settlers. 

Prentis,  History  of  Kansas,  pp.  71-78. 

Thayer,  The  Kansas  Crusade. 

Robinson,  The  Kansas  Conflict,  chaps.  li-iv. 

Mrs.  Robinson,  Kansas — Its  Interior  and  Exterior  Life. 

Gihon,  Geary  and  Kansas,  chap.  iv. 

Historical  Collections,  vol.  vi,  p.  90;  vol.  ix,  p.  144. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  When  was  Kansas  organized  as  a  territory?  In  what  way 
had  the  people  gained  any  knowledge  of  Kansas  up  to  this  time 
Why  did  Kansas  soon  become  well  known? 


70 


A   HISTORY   OF   KANSAS 


Lawrence  was  not  the  only  place  in  the  Territory  that 
was  settled  before  the  close  of  the  first  winter.  People 
were  coming  in  from  north,  east,  and 
south,  settling  on  claims  and  starting  other 
towns.  The  principal  proslavery  towns  were  Leaven- 
worth, Atchison,  and  Lecompton.    Free-state  towns  were 


Other  towns 


The  first  house  in  Topeka. 

Lawrence,  Topeka,  Osawatomie,  and  Manhattan.  Leaven- 
worth and  Atchison  were  both  founded  by  people  from 
Missouri,  and,  since  they  were  on  the  Missouri  River,  came 
to  be  outfitting  points  for  travelers  over  the  California 
and  Salt  Lake  Trails.  Lecompton,  on  the  Kansas  River, 
not  far  from  Lawrence,  soon  became  the  headquarters  of 
the  proslavery  people,  and  for  several  years  was  the  Terri- 
torial capital.  Topeka  was  founded  with  the  hope  of 
its  becoming  the  capital  of  Kansas.  Osawatomie  soon 
became  an  important  free-state  center.    Manhattan,  on 


THE  COMING  OF  THE  SETTLERS  71 

the  Kansas  River  at  the  mouth  of  the  Big  Blue,  was  for 
the  first  few  months  called  Boston.  On  the  arrival  of  a 
party  of  seventy-five  people  from  Cincinnati,  Ohio,  the 
name  was  changed  to  Manhattan.  This  party  made  the 
entire  trip  from  Cincinnati  to  Manhattan  by  boat. 

SUMMARY 

When  Kansas  Territory  was  organized  little  was  known 
of  it,  but,  because  it  was  wanted  by  both  the  North  and  the 
South,  knowledge  of  Kansas  spread  rapidly.  The  South 
had  the  support  of  every  branch  of  the  National  Govern- 
ment and  the  added  advantage  that  the  only  state  touch- 
ing Kansas  was  proslavery.  The  advantage  of  the  North 
lav  in  the  fact  that  it  had  a  much  larger  number  of  people 
who  were  free  to  move  to  a  new  country.  The  proslavery 
Missourians  came  in  at  once  and  took  claims.  A  few  free- 
state  people  came  within  a  month,  and  in  two  months 
the  emigrant  aid  parties  began  to  arrive.  The  fact  that 
many  Missourians  had  staked  out  claims  and  gone  back 
home  led  to  numerous  claim  disputes  and  caused  the 
organization  of  the  Actual  Settlers'  Association.  By  the 
time  winter  had  come  four  emigrant  aid  parties  had  ar- 
rived at  Lawrence,  many  settlers  were  living  on  their 
claims,  and  several  towns  had  been  started  by  each  side, 

REFERENCES 

Spring,  Kansas,  pp.  29-40. 

Brooks,  The  Boy  Settlers. 

Prentis,  History  of  Kansas,  pp.  71-78. 

Thayer,  The  Kansas  Crusade. 

Robinson,  The  Kansas  Conflict,  chaps,  il-iv. 

Mrs.  Robinson,  Kansas — Its  Interior  and  Exterior  Life. 

Gihon,  Geary  and  Kansas,  chap.  iv. 

Historical  Collections,  vol.  vi,  p.  90;  vol.  ix,  p.  144. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  When  was  Kansas  organized  as  a  territory?  In  what  way 
had  the  people  gained  any  knowledge  of  Kansas  up  to  this  time 
Why  did  Kansas  soon  become  well  known? 


/ 


72  A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 

2.  What  advantages  did  the  South  have  in  the  effort  to  win 
Kansas?     The  North? 

3.  Contrast  the  manner  of  life  in  the  North  and  the  South  in 
those  days.    What  do  you  know  of  the  conditions  to-day? 

4.  Why  did  Missouri  play  an  important  part  in  early  Kansas 
affairs?     Explain  how  Missourians  took  claims. 

5.  Why  did  the  North  organize  emigrant  aid  companies?  What 
was  the  chief  company?  What  did  it  do?  Did  all  the  Kansas  set- 
tlers come  under  the  management  of  these  companies? 

6.  What  was  the  attitude  of  the  South  toward  these  organiza- 
tions? 

7.  When  did  the  first  emigrant  aid  party  arrive?  Tell  of  their 
journey;  their  settlement.  Were  they  the  first  free-state  settlers  to 
arrive? 

8.  Give  an  account  of  the  second  party.  Tell  something  of  the 
way  they  lived.  What  had  been  accomplished  by  the  time  winter 
set  in? 

9.  What  was  the  Actual  Settlers'  Association?  Why  was  it 
formed? 

10.  Name  several  persons  connected  with  this  period  of  Kansas 
history,  and  tell  something  of  each. 

11.  Name  and  locate  some  of  the  towns  settled  during  this  period. 


CHAPTER  Vltl 

THE  nRST  TERRITORIAL  GOVERNMENT 

When  a  territory  is  organized  it  must  be  provided  with 
a  government.    The  people  in  a  territory  may  not  elect 

their  officers  as  in  a  state;  they  may  elect 
If  I  ferrUor7^"*  ^  legislature  and  a  delegate  to  Congress, 

but  the  governor,  secretary,  judges,  and 
certain  other  officers  are  appointed  by  the  President. 

In  October,  1854,  there  arrived  in  Kansas  the  first  Ter- 
ritorial Governor,  Andrew  H.  Reeder,  who,  although  he  was 

known  to  favor  slavery,  was  heartily  wel- 
Sfaf  civlrno;     ^omed  by  all  the  people.     That  he  might 

become  familiar  with  conditions  in  the 
Territory,  Governor  Reeder  made  a  tour  of  inspection 
shortly  after  his  arrival.  Although  this  was  but  little 
more  than  four  months  after  the  opening  of  the  Territory, 
he  found  a  number  of  settlements  scattered  over  eastern 
Kansas.  Towns  were  springing  up,  and  the  prairies  were 
dotted  with  the  tents  and  cabins  of  the  pioneers.  Several 
thousand  people  had  arrived  by  this  time,  some  of  them 
free-state  and  some  proslavery.  The  proslavery  settlers 
had  brought  a  few  slaves.  There  were  also  many  Indians 
here,  for  only  a  part  of  the  tribes  had  as  yet  been  removed. 
On  his  return  from  his  tour  of  observation,  which  had 
included  the  most  remote  settlements,  as  far  west  as 

Council  Grove  and  Fort  Riley,  Governor 
election  called       Reeder  issued  a  proclamation  for  the  first 

election  to  be  held  in  Kansas.    The  date 
(73) 


74  A   HISTORY   OF   KANSAS 

was  set  for  November  29,  at  which  time  a  delegate  to 
Congress  was  to  be  chosen. 

The  settlers  were  all  busily  engaged  in  building  cabins 
and  otherwise  providing  for  the  coming  of  winter,  and 
since  this  election  was  not  deemed  of  much 
the^dection  importance  they  took  little  interest  in  it. 

This  was  not  the  case,  however,  with  the 
Missourians,  and  at  this  first  election,  under  the  leadership 
of  their  Senator,  D.  R.  Atchison,  they  gave  an  exhibition  of 
the  methods  by  which  they  expected  to  control  Kansas. 

On  the  day  before  election  the  Blue  Lodge  voters  began 
to  cross  the  border  into  Kansas.  They  came  well  armed. 
Election  day,  ^^^  organized  into  companies,  each  of 
November  which  went  to  a  polling  place.    They  came 

to  vote,  and  they  voted.  There  were  so 
many  of  them  that  they  were  able  to  outnumber  the  legal 
voters  in  many  of  the  precincts  where  they  took  possession 
of  the  polls.  Election  judges  who  refused  to  accept  their 
votes  were  removed  and  judges  of  their  own  installed.^ 

Of  course  the  proslavery  delegate  was  overwhelmingly 
elected.  He  would  probably  have  been  elected  had  the 
Missourians  stayed  at  home,  for  up  to  this 
time  a  majority  of  the  settlers  outside  of 
Lawrence  favored  slavery.  The  result  of  this  unfair 
election  was  to  renew  the  excitement  in  the  North  at  such 
a  working  out  of  the  principle  of  "popular  sovereignty." 
But  the  free-state  pioneers  were  not  to  be  discouraged. 
They  continued,  during  the  winter,  their  home  building, 
their  preparations  for  the  spring  cultivation,  and  the 
securing  of  titles  to  their  land. 

1.  It  should  be  borne  in  mind  that  many  of  the  Missourians 
who  took  such  an  active  part  in  Kansas  affairs  were  not  repre- 
sentative citizens  of  that  state,  but  were  of  the  unprincipled  and 
outlaw  classes.    Many  of  them  were  hired  for  this  work. 


THE  FIRST  TERRITORIAL  GOVERNMENT  75 

The  first  event  of  importance  in  the  new  year  was  the 
taking  of  the  census  of  the  Territory  in  the  spring.  It 
The  second  showed  a  total  population  of  8601,  about 

election,  3000  of  whom  were  voters.    A  little  later 

March  30, 1855  ^  ^^^  ^^  ^^^  ^^^  ^j^^  election  of  a  Ter- 
ritorial Legislature.  Since  this  body  of  men  would  make 
the  laws  for  the  Territory,  there  was  no  lack  of  interest 
among  the  settlers  in  this  election.  It  was  well  under- 
stood that  the  Missourians  were  expecting  to  vote  again. 
Money  was  being  raised  and  men  hired  to  march  into 
Kansas  on  election  day.  They  came,  fully  five  thousand  of 
them,  armed  with  pistols,  guns,  and  bowie-knives,  and 
marched  to  the  different  polling  places.  They  did  not 
pretend  to  be  residents  of  Kansas,  but  boasted  that  they 
were  from  Missouri.  They  were  disorderly  and  danger- 
ous, and  in  many  cases  drove  the  legal  voters  from  the 
polls.  Not  more  than  half  of  the  3000  rightful  voters 
cast  ballots  in  this  election,  but  the  count  showed  that 
more  than  6000  ballots  were  cast. 

The  whole  thing  had  been  so  openly  fraudulent  that  the 
free-state  people  demanded  that  the  Governor  set  aside 
this  election  and  call  a  new  one.  The 
Legislature  "  Missourians  threatened  his  life  if  this  were 
done.  When  the  day  came  for  deciding 
the  question,  the  men  who  had  been  fraudulently  elected 
gathered  in  the  Governor's  office,  armed  and  defiant.  The 
Governor  and  a  number  of  his  friends  who  were  there  to 
protect  him  were  also  armed.  Bitter  discussion  ensued,  but 
there  was  no  fighting.  Contests  had  not  been  filed  against 
all  of  the  men  elected.  Governor  Reeder  decided  to  recog- 
nize the  election  except  where  sufficient  proof  of  fraud  was 
shown.  In  these  cases  he  threw  out  the  returns  and  ordered 
another  election.  The  proslavery  men  took  no  part  in  the 
new  election,  and  a  number  of  free-state  men  were  chosen  to 


76  A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 

the  Legislature.  When  the  Legislature  met,  the  proslavery 
majority  promptly  unseated  these  free-state  members  and 
recognized  the  men  first  elected.  This  gave  the  Territory 
an  entirely  proslavery  legislature.  It  was  called  by  the 
free-state  people  the ''  Bogus  Legislature."  The  proslavery 
leaders  were  B.  F.  Stringfellow  and  D.  R.  Atchison,  both 
of  whom  Hved  in  Missouri  but  took  an  active  part  in 
Kansas  affairs.  Senator  Atchison  said,  *'We  wish  to  make 
Kansas  in  all  respects  like  Missouri."  So  they  adopted  the 
whole  body  of  Missouri  laws,  and  added  a  series  of  slave 
laws  that  were  probably  the  most  severe  of  any  ever  en- 
acted in  the  United  States. 

The  Governor  chose  Pawnee  as  the  place  where  the 
Legislature  should  meet.  Pawnee  was  a  new  town  on  the 
The  first  Legisla-  Kansas  River,  within  the  present  bounds  of 
ture,  at  Pawnee,  the  Fort  Riley  military  reservation.  Since 
"  ^'       ^  it  was  west  of  nearly  all  the  settlements,  the 

members  had  to  make  long  journeys  to  reach  it.  Both 
because  of  the  inconvenience  of  location  and  because 
the  proslavery  members  desired  to  be  nearer  the  Missouri 
border,  the  Legislature  remained  in  session  at  Pawnee 
only  five  days,  just  long  enough  to  unseat  the  free-state 
members  and  to  pass  an  act  removing  the  seat  of  gov- 
ernment temporarily  to  Shawnee  Mission.  All  that 
remains  of  Pawnee  to-day  is  the  old  stone  building  that 
was  erected  for  a  capitol. 

Governor  Reeder  had  refused  to  accede  to  all  the  de^ 
mands  of  the  proslavery  people,  and  had  fallen  into  dis- 
The  removal  favor  with  them.  When  he  refused  to 
of  Governor  sign  some  of  their  measures  they  peti- 
®®  ^^  tioned  the  President  for  his  removal,  which 

soon  followed.  Governor  Reeder 's  administration  had 
lasted  through  less  than  a  year  of  these  troublous  times. 
In  the  summer  of  1855,  with  the  Territory  little  more 


THE  FIRST  TERRITORIAL  GOVERNMENT  77 

than  a  year  old,  the  people  were  divided  into  two  bitter 
factions,  proslavery  and  free-state,  with  the  proslavery 
people  congratulating  themselves  upon  being  rid  of  a 
Governor  they  could  not  control,  upon  having  the  sup- 
port of  the  President,  and  upon  having  a  Legislature 
unanimously  proslavery.  Daniel  Woodson,  the  Territorial 
Secretary,  who  now  became  Acting  Governor,  approved  the 
acts  of  the  proslavery  Legislature. 

These  were  dark  days  for  the  free-state  people;  they 
had  no  hand  in  the  (Government  and  no  recognition  in 
Gloomy  outlook  ^^^  ^^ws  of  the  Territory.  They  were 
for  the  free-  denounced,  misrepresented,  and  ridiculed, 
state  people  rp^  ^^^  ^^  ^j^^  ^j^^^^  ^  ^j^^  situation,  the 

new  Territorial  Governor,  Wilson  Shannon,  at  first  en- 
tirely ignored  the  existence  of  free-state  citizens.  No  com- 
munity could  obey  the  slave  laws  passed  by  the  "Bogus 
Legislature"  without  becoming  proslavery.  But  the  free- 
state  i^eople  had  no  intention  of  becoming  proslavery; 
they  had  no  intention  of  giving  up  the  struggle.  They 
found  themselves  confronted  with  the  question  of  what 
was  to  be  done.     It  was  a  very  grave  situation. 

SUMMARY 

The  first  Territorial  Governor,  Andrew  H.  Reeder,  ar- 
rived in  October,  1854.  After  a  tour  of  inspection,  he 
called  an  election  to  choose  a  Territorial  delegate  to  Con- 
gress. Although  there  were  probably  enough  proslavery 
settlers  to  carry  the  election,  the  Missourians,  to  make 
sure,  came  over  in  force,  and  elected  their  candidate  with 
an  overwhelming  majority.  Another  election  was  called 
in  March  to  choose  members  of  a  Territorial  Legislature. 
The  Missourians  came  again,  and  although  the  census  had 
shown  but  3000  voters  in  Kansas  there  were  twice  that 
number  of  ballots  cast.  On  proof  of  fraud  Governor 
Reeder  threw  out  the  contested  returns  and  free-state  men 
were  elected,  but  when  the  Legislature  met  the  proslavery 


78  A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 

majority  unseated  them  and  recognized  those  first  elected. 
Pawnee  was  chosen  by  the  Governor  as  the  Territorial 
capital,  but  after  five  days  the  Legislature  adjourned  to 
Shawnee  Mission.  The  measures  passed  were  entirely  in 
the  interests  of  slavery.  Although  Governor  Reeder  came 
to  Kansas  favoring  slavery,  he  did  not  approve  of  the 
methods  of  the  proslavery  people.  He  was  removed  in 
July,  1855.  He  was  replaced  by  Wilson  Shannon,  who 
was  in  full  sympathy  with  slavery  interests.  Every  con- 
dition was  unfavorable  to  the  free-state  people  at  this  time. 

REFERENCES 

Spring,  Kansas,  chap.  iv. 

Robinson,  The  Kansas  Conflict,  chaps.  VI,  VII. 
Holloway,  History  of  Kansas,  chaps,  xii,  xiii,  xvii. 
Andreas,  History  of  Kansas,  pp.  87-101. 
Connelley,  Kansas  Territorial  Governors. 

Historical  Collections,  vol.  v,  p.  163;  vol.  vil,  p.  361;  vol.  vni, 
p.  227. 

Prentis,  History  of  Kansas,  pp.  79-87. 
Hodder,  Government  of  Kansas,  pp.  5-13. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  How  is  a  territory  governed? 

2.  Who  was  the  first  Territorial  Governor  of  Kansas?     How 
long  did  he  serve?    What  was  his  attitude  toward  Siavery? 

3.  What  were  the  conditions  in  Kansas  when  the  first  Governor 
arrived?    How  far  west  did  settlements  reach  at  that  time? 

4.  When  was  the  first  election  held?     What  was  its   purpose? 
Give  an  account  of  it. 

5.  When  was  the  first  census  taken  and  what  did  it  show? 

6.  What  was  the  purpose  of  the  second  election?     Give  an 
account  of  it. 

7.  Why  was  the  "Bogus  Legislature"  so  called?     Where  did  it 
meet?     What  did  it  do? 

8.  Who  were  some  of  the  proslavery  leaders? 

9.  Why  were  these  "dark  days"  for  the  free-state  people? 

10.  Who  was  the  new  Territorial  Governor?    With  which  side 
did  he  sympathize? 


CHAPTER    IX 

RIVAL  GOVERNMENTS  IN  KANSAS 

The  free-state  people  decided  to  ignore  the  proslavery 
government,  and  since  they  were  really  made  outlawa 

by  the  "Bogus  Legislature"  they  organ- 
state^plan  ^^^^  another  government  and  sought  the 

admission  of  Kansas  as  a  state.  To  ac- 
complish this  it  was  necessary  to  draw  up  a  state  consti- 
tution, which  must  be  approved  by  the  people  of  the 
Territory  and  by  Congress. 

A  number  of  meetings  were  held  for  the  purpose  of  get- 
ting the  free-state  people  interested  and  willing  to  work 

together.  The 
f/aderf '^  leaders  in  these 

efforts  were  Dr. 
Charles  Robinson,  of  Lawrence, 
ex-Governor  Reeder,  who  had 
come  back  to  Kansas  as  a  tire- 
less worker  in  the  free-state 
cause,  and  James  H.  Lane,  a 
man  of  much  experience  who 
had  recently  come  to  Kansas. 
Lane  became  one  of  the  most 
radical  of  free-state   men   and 

played   an   important    part  in  t         xr   t 

T;r  rr  •       /.  James  H.  Lane. 

Kansas  affairs  for  many  years. 

In  the  fall  of  1855  a  convention  was  held  at  Topeka,  and 

a  state  constitution  which  said,  "There  shall  be  no  slavery 

in  this  State,"  was  drawn  up.    When  a  little  later  the 

(79) 


80  A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 

Topeka  Constitution  was  submitted  to  a  vote  of  the 
The  Topeka  people  it  carried  by  an  immense  majority. 
Constitution,        Only  free-state  people  voted,  of  course,  for 

the  proslavery  people  did  not  recognize 
any  of  these  acts  as  having  any  force.  Later  in  the 
winter  state  officers  were  elected  under  the  Constitu- 
tion, Dr.  Charles  Robinson  being  made  Governor  and 
James  H.  Lane  a  United  States  Senator.  In  the  spring 
of  1856  the  Constitution  was  sent  to  Congress  with  a 
request  that  Kansas  be  admitted  to  the  Union,  but  the 
bill  making  Kansas  a  state  failed  to  pass. 

These  were  not  the  only  events  occurring  in  the  Terri- 
tory.   It  had  become  evident  early  in  the  fall  of  1855 

that  with  the  people  divided  into  these  two 
War  1855^"^*      groups,  each  governing  itself  and  denying 

the  authority  of  the  other,  there  would 
be  a  conflict.  The  proslavery  people  had  committed 
several  outrages  that  added  to  the  irritation  of  the  free- 
state  people,  but  the  real  trouble  came  with  the  murder 
of  a  free-state  man.  This  brought  on  what  was  called 
the  Wakarusa  War. 

A  proslavery  man  named  Coleman  shot  and  killed  a 
young  free-state  man  named  Dow.    This  occurred  about 

ten  miles  south  of  Lawrence.  Coleman 
ome^tfoubkf      then  fled  to  Westport,  Missouri,  where  he 

appealed  for  protection  to  a  man  named 
Jones,  who,  although  he  lived  in  Missouri  and  was  the 
postmaster  at  Westport,  had  been  appointed  by  the 
"Bogus  Legislature"  as  sheriff  of  Douglas  County.  Jones 
was  a  border  ruffian  of  the  lowest  and  most  dangerous 
type,  and  had  made  himself  obnoxious  to  the  free-state 
people  by  his  leadership  in  the  fraudulent  elections. 
In  the  meantime  a  friend  of  Coleman  declared  that  his 


'     RIVAL   GOVERNMENTS   IN    KANSAS  81 

life  was  threatened  by  Jacob  Branson,  an  old  man  with 
whom  young  Dow  had  made  his  home. 
ll^BrlnZn  Thereupon   Sheriff  Jones   arrested  Bran- 

son, but  a  party  of  free-state  men,  indig- 
nant because  of  such  high-handed  proceedings,  rescued 
him  and  took  him  to  Lawrence. 

Of  all  the  settlements  in  Kansas,  Lawrence  was  the  most 
hated  by  the  proslavery  people,  for  it  was  the  hotbed  of 
Proslavery  free-state   principles   and    the   gathering 

hatred  of  place  of  those  who  scorned  the  Territorial 

Lawrence  Legislature.    There  had  come  to  be  a  gen- 

eral proslavery  conviction  that  nothing  less  than  the 
destruction  of  this  town  could  bring  them  peace  and 
safety. 

Lawrence  had  nothing  to  do  with  any  of  this  trouble  with 
the  sheriff,  but  when  the  rescued  Branson  was  taken  there 
Sheriff  Jones  ^^  ^ave  the  enemy  an  excuse  to  threaten  the 
gathers  an  destruction  of  the  town.    When  his  pris- 

*'"*^  oner  was  taken  from  him,  Jones  sent  a  call 

to  Missouri  for  help  and  asked  Governor  Shannon  for 
three  thousand  men  to  ''carry  out  the  laws."  The  result 
was  that  fifteen  hundred  Missourians  assembled  for  the 
destruction  of  Lawrence,  and  camped  on  the  banks  of  the 
Wakarusa  River  about  three  miles  south  of  the  town. 

Meanwhile,  although  Branson  and  his  rescuers  had  left 
Lawrence  and  there  was  not  a  man  in  the  town  for  whom 
Lawrence  Jones  had  a  warrant,  his  army  continued 

prepares  for  to  gather,  and  Lawrence  prepared  for  de- 
defense  fense.  The  surrounding  settlers  came  in 
and  the  six  hundred  men  built  fortifications  and  drilled. 

The  army  of  Jones,  "an  unwashed,  braggart,  volcanic 
multitude,"  was  living  off  the  surrounding  country, 
rifling  cabins  and  stealing  horses  and  cattle.     The  people 


k/ 


82  A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 

of  Lawrence  were  feeling  the  burden  of  the  siege  also, 
for  with  the  large  number  of  those  who  had  come  in  from 
the  outside  their  supplies  were  being  rap-> 
W^karusaVar  ^^^^  exhausted.  Finally  two  men  suc- 
ceeded in  getting  through  the  lines  of  the 
enemy  and  in  reaching  the  Governor  who  was  being  de- 
ceived about  conditions.  Governor  Shannon  then  came 
to  Lawrence,  and,  learning  how  things  really  were,  took 
an  active  part  in  arranging  a  treaty  between  the  op- 
posing forces  and,  to  the  disgust  and  disappointment 
of  Sheriff  Jones,  dispersed  the  proslavery  army.  Without 
battle  or  bloodshed,  what  has  since  been  known  as  the 
Wakarusa  War  was  over. 

SUMMARY 

Instead  of  submitting  to  the  proslavery  Territorial  Gov- 
ernment, the  free-state  people  decided  to  set  up  another 
government.  They  held  a  convention  at  Topeka  and  drew 
up  a  constitution  prohibiting  slavery.  This  constitution 
was  adopted  by  the  free-state  people  of  the  Territory,  and 
then  sent  to  Congress  with  a  request  that  Kansas  be  ad- 
mitted to  the  Union.  The  bill  failed  to  pass.  These  rival 
governments  within  the  Territory  brought  on  the  Wakarusa 
War,  the  principal  events  of  which  were  as  follows:  Cole- 
man shot  Dow  and  fled  to  Jones,  sheriff  of  Douglas  County, 
for  protection.  Jones  arrested  Dow's  friend  Branson,  who 
was  rescued  by  free-state  men  and  taken  to  Lawrence,  the 
town  most  hated  by  the  proslavery  people.  Jones  then 
gathered  an  army  of  Missourians  for  the  purpose  of  de- 
stroying Lawrence.  While  both  sides  were  preparing  for 
the  struggle,  two  free-state  men  succeeded  in  reaching 
Governor  Shannon,  who  came  to  Lawrence,  and,  on  learn- 
ing the  real  condition,  succeeded  in  arranging  a  treaty 
of  peace,  and  dispersed  the  proslavery  army. 


RIVAL  GOVERNMENTS  IN   KANSAS  83 

REFERENCES 

Prentis,  History  of  Kansas,  pp.  88-92. 
Spring,  Kansas. 
Holloway,  History  of  Kansas. 
Tuttle,  History  of  Kansas. 
Gihon,  Geary  and  Kansas. 
Andreas,  History  of  Kansas,  pp.  101-120. 

Historical  Collections,  vol.  vi,  p.  291;  vol.  vii,  p.  521;  vol.  ix, 
p.  640;  vol.  X,  p.  457. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  Explain  what  is  meant  by  "rival  governments  in  Kansas." 

2.  What  was  the  purpose  of  the  Topeka  Constitution? 

3.  Was  Kansas  admitted  under  this  Constitution? 

4.  Who  was  Charles  Robinson?     James  H.  Lane? 

5.  What  event  brought  on  the  Wakarusa  War?    Why  was  it  so 
named? 

6.  Name  five  persons  connected  with  this  war,  and  tell  some- 
thing of  each. 

7.  What  did  Lawrence  have  to  do  with  the  trouble? 

8.  Give  the  events  of  the  Wakarusa  War.    How  was  it  ended? 


!flllifHIH!lif|||i!lff?ff!l 


^m:minL,.... ,.-.   ...iriiiiiHiiiiHiiifiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiniii;.. 


Territorial  Governors 


CHAPTER  X 

THE  PERIOD  OF  VIOLENCE 

The  Wakarusa  War  closed  in  December,  1855.  This 
second  winter  proved  to  be  an  exceedingly  severe  one,  and 
The  severe  many  of  the  settlers  were  not  sufficiently 

winter  of  protected  against  the  sudden  and  intense 

1865-  56  cold.     Most  of  the  houses  were  hastily 

constructed,  one-room  log  buildings,  many  of  them  with 
dirt  floors,  and  windows  and  doors  of  cotton  cloth.  The 
storms  drifted  into  these  cabins  through  numberless  chinks 
and  cracks  in  roof  and  walls.  One  of  the  pioneers,  writing 
of  that  winter,  says:  "At  times,  when  the  winds  were  bleak- 
est we  went  to  bed  a^  the  only  escape  from  freezing.  More 
than  once  we  awoke  in  the  morning  to  find  six  inches  of 
snow  in  the  cabin.  To  get  up,  to  make  one's  toilet  under 
such  circumstances,  was  not  a  very  comfortable  per- 
formance. Often  we  had  little  to  eat;  the  wolf  was  never 
far  from  our  door  during  that  hard  winter  of  1855-'56." 

The  struggle  of  the  pioneers  with  the  hardships  of  winter 
closed  hostilities  for  a  while,  but  it  soon  became  evident  that 
the  Missourians  were  preparing  more  exten- 
fo^hostuure^s  sively  than  ever  to  invade  Kansas,  destroy 
Lawrence,  and  drive  the  free-state  people 
from  the  Territory,  or  force  them  to  recognize  the  proslav- 
ery  Territorial  Government.  The  free-state  people  began 
to  gather  stores  and  ammunition  and  to  send  calls  to  the 
northern  states  for  men  and  money  to  meet  the  situation. 

A  number  of  minor  conflicts  occurred.     Sheriff  Jones 

(85) 


86 


A   HISTORY   OF   KANSAS 


was  wounded,  a  young  free-state  man  named  Barber  was 
The  sacking  of     killed,  and  then  came  the  long  feared  at- 


Lawrence, 
May  21,  1856 


tack  upon  Lawrence.    From  the  beginning 

the  policy  of  the  free-state  people  had 
been  to  avoid  conflict  wherever  possible.  On  this  occasion 
they  made  every  attempt  to  conciliate  and  to  pacify  the 
attacking  force,  but  in  vain.  As  the  proslavery  leaders 
rode  through  the  town  they  were  invited  to  dinner  by  Mr. 
Eldridge,  the  proprietor  of  the  new  $20,000  hotel  built 
by  the  Emigrant  Aid  Company.  They  accepted  the  in- 
vitation, and  in  the  afternoon 
the  mob  completely  demolished 
the  hotel.  They  threw  the  two 
printing  presses  of  the  town  into 
the  river,  ransacked  stores  and 
houses,  taking  whatever  they 
wanted,  and  before  leaving  town 
burned  Governor  Robinson's 
home.  The  financial  loss  to 
Lawrence  and  the  surrounding 
country  was  heavy.  Though 
the  people  had  been  oppressed 
and  outraged  they  had  not  been 
conquered.  By  offering  no  re- 
sistance they  had  robbed  the 
affair  of  any  possible  justifica- 
tion in  the  eyes  of  the  world. 
There  was  one  who  bitterly 
opposed  this  policy  of  nonresistance,  who  believed  that  the 

way  to  meet  the  situation  was  to  fight. 

This  was  John  Brown,  a  tall,  gaunt,  grizzled 
old  man  who  had  come  to  Kansas  a  few  weeks  before  the 
sacking  of  Lawrence.     Five  sons  had  preceded  him  and 


1 

^f{-      i       '^-''i""""'.3i 

f  , 

■H^^jg 

^M 

H 

1 

John  Brown. 


John  Brown 


THE  PERIOD  OF  VIOLENCE  87 

had  settled  near  Osawatomie.  John  Brown  came,  not  to 
aid  his  sons  in  their  pioneer  struggles,  nor  to  make  a  home 
for  himself,  but  because  it  seemed  to  him  an  opportunity 
to  strike  a  blow  at  slavery.  He  hated  slavery  with  an  in- 
tensity that  knew  no  bounds,  and  he  gave  all  of  his  mind 
and  energy  to  warfare  against  it. 

The  sacking  of  Lawrence  roused  him  to  a  high  pitch  of 
excitement.  He  believed  that  this  outrage  should  be 
The  Pottawato-  avenged,  and  determined  to  strike  a  blow, 
mie  Massacre,  to  retum  violence  for  violence.  With  a 
May  24, 1856  party  of  seven  or  eight  men,  including  four 
of  his  sons,  he  made  a  night  trip  down  Pottawatomie 
Creek  where  a  number  of  proslavery  settlers  lived.  Five 
of  these  settlers  were  called  out  of  their  houses  and  killed. 

This  kind  of  warfare  was  not  in  accordance  with  the 
plans  or  purposes  of  the  leaders  of  the  free-state  movement, 
Beginning  of  ^^^  ^^s  not  approved  by  them.  News  of 
four  months  of  the  awful  affair  spread  rapidly  through 
violence  ^^^  Territory  and  created  wild  excitement. 

The  Pottawatomie  massacre  was  followed  by  a  period  of 
nearly  four  months  of  violence  on  both  sides. 

A  band  of  border  ruffians  gathered  to  wreak  vengeance 
on  those  who  had  taken  the  lives  of  the  proslavery  settlers 
of  Pottawatomie  Creek.  The  battle  of 
«m  for^war  ^^^ck  Jack  resulted,  in  which  the  border 

ruffians  were  defeated  by  John  Brown  and 
his  men.  The  Missouri  border  hurriedly  gathered  more 
forces  and  marched  a  well-armed  body  of  men  into  Kan- 
sas. The  free-state  men  had  been  busy,  too,  and  on  June 
5  the  Missourians  were  met  by  a  band  of  armed  free- 
state  Kansas  settlers. 

This  alarming  state  of  affairs  aroused  Governor  Shan- 
non and  he  at  once  ordered  both  sides  to  disperse.  The 
free-state  army  disbanded,  but  the  Missourians  obeyed 


88  A  HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 

Armies  dis-  sullenly,  and  on  their  way  back  to  Mis- 

persed  by  the       souri  they  committed  a  number  of  depre- 
overnor  dations,  and  pillaged  Osawatomie,  which 

they  hated  because  it  was  the  home  of  John  Brown. 

The  North  was  deeply  stirred  by  the  calamities  endured 
by  the  free-state  people  in  Kansas.  Although  practically 
Free-state  help  ^^^  ^^  ^^^  free-state  newspapers  here  had 
from  northern  been  closed  or  destroyed,  the  papers  in  the 
®*^*®^  northern   and    eastern  states  were   filled 

with  narrations  of  the  hardships,  robberies,  and  murders 
that  had  befallen  antislavery  settlers  in  the  Territory. 
The  Kansas  troubles  were  discussed  from  the  pulpit,  and 
the  great  preacher,  Henry  Ward  Beecher,  advised  send- 
ing rifles  to  Kansas  and  pledged  his  church  for  a  definite 
number.  The  men  thus  sent  out  armed  with  Bibles  and 
rifles  were  sometimes  called  "The  Rifle  Christians."  Pub- 
lic meetings  were  addressed  by  men  fresh  from  Kansas, 
among  them  ex-Governor  Reeder,  S.  N.  Wood,  and  James 
H.  Lane.  Much  sympathy  was  aroused  for  the  suffering 
free-state  settlers.  Large  sums  of  money  were  raised, 
and  companies  of  men  were  organized  to  take  part  in  the 
Territorial  contest.  The  movement  swept  over  the  states 
from  Boston  to  the  Northwest.^  "  Societies  of  semi-mili- 
tary cast,  no  less  willing  to  furnish  guns  than  groceries, 
sprang  up  as  if  by  magic,  and  overshadowed  the  earlier, 
more  pacific  organizations."  As  a  result  of  these  agita- 
tions a  stream  of  migration  moved  toward  Kansas 
during  the  spring  and  summer  of  1856.  Every  party  came 
prepared  for  defense,  and  many  brought   with   them  a 

1.  Ingalls  said  of  this  period:  "No  time  was  ever  so  minutely 
and  so  indelibly  photographed  upon  the  public  retina.  The  name 
of  no  State  was  ever  on  so  many  friendly  and  so  many  hostile  tongues. 
It  was  pronounced  in  every  political  speech,  and  inserted  in  every 
political  platform.  No  region  was  ever  so  advertised,  and  the  im- 
pression then  produced  has  never  passed  away." 


THE   PERIOD  OF  VIOLENCE  89 

goodly  stock  of  provisions.  One  writer  says  of  the  immi- 
grants, "There  were  fewer  women  and  children,  less 
house-luggage,  fewer  agricultural  implements;  more  men, 
more  arms,  more  ammunition." 

These  activities  of  the  North  were  viewed  with  alarm 
by  the  proslavery  leaders.    They  believed  that  this  inflow 

of  free-state  settlers  must  be  checked  or  it 
Missouri  River  ,,        j      n   i  t         i  •         rr 

closed  to  free-      would  end  all  hope  of  makmg  Kansas  a 

state  immigra-      slave  state.    One  of  the  most  important  of 

the  measures  they  adopted  for  this  purpose 
was  the  closing  of  the  Missouri  River  to  free-state  immi- 
gration. They  overhauled  the  steamboats  and  seized 
merchandise  and  arms  that  were  being  sent  to  free-state 
people,  and  they  arrested  and  turned  back  all  travelers 
whom  they  believed  to  be  unfriendly  to  the  South.  All 
overland  immigrants  received  similar  treatment  as  soon 
as  they  touched  Missouri  soil. 

Although  this  policy  occasioned  the  northern  people 
considerable  loss  and   much  inconvenience,   it  did  not 

check  the  movement  toward  Kansas.  It 
to^Kansas^  simply  meant  that  the  immigrants  came 

through  Iowa  and  Nebraska,  entering 
Kansas  from  the  north. 

The  Southerners  also  appealed  to  their  people  and 

money  was  raised  and  men  were  sent  to  Kansas,  but  the 

response  was  not  to  be  compared  with  that  of  the  North. 

While  these  things  were  going  on,  Kansas  was  becoming 

more  and  more  lawless.     It  would  be  hard  to  say  which 

side  surpassed  the  other  in  misdeeds.  A 
tXssnesB  ^"^      number  of  free-state  leaders,  including  Dr. 

Robinson,  were  held  at  Lecompton  during 
the  summer,  as  prisoners  on  a  charge  of  treason.  The 
free-state  people  were  irritated  by  the  loss  of  money,  sup- 
plies, and  mail,  through  the  Missouri  blockade.     Bands 


90  A   HISTORY   OF   KANSAS 

of  armed  proslavery  men  guarded  the  roads  out  of  Topeka 
and  Lawrence,  so  that  these  towns  were  really  in  a  state  of 
siege.  These  guards  lived  on  supplies  taken  from  the  sur- 
rounding settlers,  and  cut  off  supplies  sent  to  the  towns  so 
that  food  became  very  scarce,  especially  at  Lawrence, 
where  the  chief  article  of  diet  for  some  time  was  ground 
oats.  Meanwhile,  supplies  were  reaching  the  proslavery 
towns,  Tecumseh,  Lecompton,  and  Franklin,  without 
hindrance.  It  was  evident  to  the  free-state  people  that 
their  enemies  expected  to  starve  them  out  of  the  Territory, 
and  they  were  stirred  to  retaliate.  The  free-state  guerril- 
las again  began  their  work  of  seizing  the  supplies  of  pro- 
slavery  settlers  and  merchants.  This  was  kept  up  until 
many  of  the  proslavery  people  were  completely  impover- 
ished. 

About  the  first  of  August  a  report  that  Lane  was  coming 
with  the  "Army  of  the  North''  spread  over  the  Terri- 
tory. James  H.  Lane  was  one  of  the 
Sle^Nw-th"  ^^  free-state  men  who  had  been  in  the  north- 
ern states,  addressing  meetings  and  rais- 
ing men  and  money.  He  was  a  very  eloquent  speaker  and 
had  influenced  many  to  come  to  Kansas.  The  "Army  of 
the  North"  consisted  of  several  hundred  men,  women, 
and  children,  most  of  whom  had  come  to  make  homes 
for  themselves.  This  army  was  a  combination  of  several 
parties  that  had  united  to  come  into  Kansas  over  the  new 
route  through  Iowa  and  Nebraska.  Lane  was  with  the 
party,  but  only  a  small  number  were  armed  or  had  been 
gathered  by  him. 

The  proslavery  leaders  began  to  rally  their  men  along 
the  border.  The  following  sentences  are  taken  from  one 
of  the  calls  they  published:  "Lane's  men  have  arrived! 
Civil  war  is  begun!  And  we  call  on  all  who  are  not  pre- 
pared to  see  their  friends  butchered,  to  be  themselves 


THE  PERIOD  OF  VIOLENCE  91 

driven  from  their  homes,  to  rally  to  the  rescue."  A  large 
number  of  men  soon  gathered  on  the  bor- 
arm^gauTers  ^^^'  anxiously  awaiting  permission  to 
move  into  Kansas;  but  as  Governor 
Shannon  had  dispersed  the  Missouri  army  a  few  weeks 
earlier,  he  now  refused  to  issue  orders  for  the  new  army 
to  move  into  the  Territory. 

About  this  time  Governor  Shannon  resigned.  He  had 
so  displeased  the  proslavery  people  that  he  was  compelled 
to  flee  for  his  life  under  cover  of  night. 
no^iTresfgn!^*""  I^^niel  Woodson,  Secretary  of  the  Terri- 
tory, now  became  Acting  Governor  until 
the  new  Governor  should  arrive.  As  he  was  in  full  sym- 
pathy with  proslavery  interests  he  opened  the  Territory  to 
the  Missouri  invasion.  Woodson's  power  lasted  only  three 
weeks,  but  they  were  the  darkest  days  that  Kansas  had 
experienced. 

The  proslavery  army  moved  into  Kansas.  The  Potta- 
watomie massacre  had  not  been  forgotten,  and  when  this 
army  reached  Osawatomie,  "the  head- 
OsSwaTol"!  "^^  quarters  of  old  Brown,"  they  attacked  the 
town.  John  Brown  had  only  forty-one 
men,  and  so  thoroughly  did  the  enemy  do  their  work  this 
time  that  only  four  cabins  escaped  burning. 

At  this  time  the  new  Territorial  Governor,  John  W. 
Geary,  arrived.  Governor  Geary  described  the  situation 
Arrival  of  ^^^^  ^^  found  on  his  arrival  in  the  follow- 

Governor  Geary,  ing  words:  "I  reached  Kansas  and  entered 
September,  1856  ^^^^  ^^^  discharge  of  my  official  duties  in 
the  most  gloomy  hour  of  her  history.  Desolation  and 
ruin  reigned  on  every  hand;  homes  and  firesides  were 
deserted;  the  smoke  of  burning  dwellings  darkened  the 
atmosphere;  women  and  children,  driven  from  their  habi- 
tations, wandered  over  the  prairies  and  among  the  wood- 


92  A   HISTORY   OF   KANSAS 

lands,  or  sought  refuge  even  among  the  Indian  tribes. 
The  highways  were  infested  with  numerous  predatory 
bands,  and  the  towns  were  fortified  and  garrisoned  by 
armies  of  conflicting  partisans,  each  excited  almost  to 
frenzy,  and  determined  upon  mutual  extermination.  Such 
was,  without  exaggeration,  the  condition  of  the  Territory 
at  the  period  of  my  arrival." 

In  the  meantime  the  big  body  of  armed  Missourians  was 
moving  forward  and  the  proslavery  settlers  were  gathering 
in  answer  to  a  call  that  closed  with  these 
the^T^rrUory  ^ords:  "Then  let  every  man  who  can 
bear  arms  be  off  to  the  war  again.  Let  it 
be  the  third  and  last  time.  Let  the  watchword  be,  'Exter- 
mination, total  and  complete.' ''  The  free-state  people  were 
scattered,  unorganized,  and  but  scantily  supplied  with 
arms  and  provisions,  and  were  therefore  in  no  condition  to 
meet  such  a  force.  Fortunately,  the  new  Governor,  whose 
policy  was  that  of  fair  play,  at  once  ordered  all  bodies  of 
armed  men  to  disband. 

The  Missourians,  however,  continued  to  move  toward 
Lawrence.  The  Governor  then  took  some  United  States 
Preparations  for  ^roops  and  went  to  Lawrence  which  he 
the  defense  of  found  in  an  almost  defenseless  condition. 
Lawrence  rpj^^  ^^^  ^^^  p^^^.^^  fortified,  with  few 

provisions  and  not  more  than  ten  rounds  of  ammunition. 
Even  the  women  and  children  were  armed.  There  were 
not  more  than  three  hundred  people,  but  there  seemed 
to  be  no  thought  of  surrender.  They  would  either  repulse 
the  enemy  or  perish  in  the  attempt.  The  arrival  of  the 
Governor  with  United  States  soldiers  brought  unexpected 
relief. 

On  the  morning  of  September  15,  Governor  Geary 
marched  out  to  the  Missouri  army  encampment  about 
three  miles  from  Lawrence,  held  a  conference  with  the 


THE  PERIOD  OF  VIOLENCE  93 

leaders,  and  insisted  that  his  orders  for  disbanding  be 
obeyed.  The  Missourians  consented,  and  the  force  of 
End  of  the  twenty-seven  hundred  well-equipped  men 

reign  of  violence,  went  home.  Thus  ended  the  four  months' 
September,  1856  ^^^^  ^^  violence  ^  that  had  begun  with  the 
sacking  of  Lawrence  in  May.  The  threatened  attack  on 
Lawrence  was  the  last  organized  effort  of  the  Missourians 
to  take  Kansas  by  force.  Both  sides  soon  gave  up  their 
plundering  expeditions,  travel  became  safer  and  property 
more  secure.  For  a  time  peace  settled  down  over  the  Ter- 
ritory, and  Governor  Geary,  believing  that  order  was 
entirely  restored  to  Kansas,  appointed  November  20  "as 
a  day  of  general  praise  and  thanksgiving  to  Almighty  God." 
With  the  close  of  the  period  of  violence  a  little  less  than 
two  and  a  half  years  had  passed  since  the  organization  of 
Kansas  as  a  territory  in  the  spring  of  1854. 

SUMMARY 

Hostilities  were  renewed  in  the  spring  of  1856.  The 
Missourians  prepared  for  invasion,  and  the  free-state 
people  for  defense.  Several  minor  conflicts  were  followed 
by  the  sacking  of  Lawrence,  to  which  the  free-state 
people  offered  no  resistance.  This  policy  was  not  ap- 
proved by  John  Brown.  He  counseled  revenge  and  the 
Pottawatomie  massacre  followed.  Then  began  a  four 
months'  "reign  of  terror."  Several  conflicts  followed, 
among  them  the  battle  of  Black  Jack.  An  army  was 
hurriedly  gathered  by  each  side,  but  Governor  Shannon 
ordered  them  to  disperse.  The  sympathy  of  the  whole 
North  was  aroused,  and  men  and  money  poured  into 
Kansas.  This  led  to  the  closing  of  Missouri  to  free-state 
travel,  and  the  newcomers  entered  Kansas  through  Ne- 
braska. During  this  time  both  sides  were  committing 
many  outrages  and  there  was  a  constant  condition  of  law- 
lessness.   The  coming  of  the  "Army  of  the  North  "  resulted 

1.  This  peried  has  given  rise  to  the  expression  "bleeding  Kansas.** 


94  A   HISTORY  OP   KANSAS 

in  the  gathering  of  a  large  army  from  Missouri  called  "the 
2700/'  Governor  Shannon  resigned,  and  Acting  Governor 
Woodson  permitted  this  army  to  enter  Kansas,  and  it 
marched  toward  Lawrence,  pillaging  Osawatomie  as  it 
passed.  While  Lawrence  was  awaiting  attack,  Geary,  the 
new  Governor,  arrived  and  ordered  the  army  disbanded. 
This  ended  the  period  of  violence. 

REFERENCES 
Prentis,  History  of  Kansas,  pp.  93-108. 
Spring,  Kansas. 

Robinson,  The  Kansas  Conflict. 

Mrs.  Robinson,  Kansas  ■ —  Its  Interior  and  Exterior  Life. 
Blackmar,  The  Life  of  Charles  Robinson. 
Connelley,  James  Henry  Lane,  the  Grim  Chieftain  of  Kansas. 
Connelley,  John  Brown. 
Andreas,  History  of  Kansas,  pp.  120-125. 
Ingalls,  Writings,  pp.  76-92,  228-262. 
McCarter,  A  Wall  of  Men.    (A  novel.) 

QUESTIONS 

1.  When  did  the  Wakarusa  War  close? 

2.  Describe  the  winter  of  1855 -'56. 

3.  What  conditions  came  with  the  spring? 

4.  Give  an  account  of  the  sacking  of  Lawrence. 

5.  Who  was  John  Brown?  Why  did  he  come  to  Kansas?  What 
was  the  Pottawatomie  massacre?  What  do  you  know  of  John 
Brown  other  than  what  is  given  in  this  book? 

6.  Give  an  account  of  the  battle  of  Black  Jack,  the  gathering  of 
armies,  and  the  pillaging  of  Osawatomie. 

7.  What  free-state  assistance  was  given  by  the  North? 

8.  What  measure  did  this  lead  Missouri  to  take? 

9.  What  was  the  "Army  of  the  North"? 

10.  What  was  "the  2700"?  Who  permitted  this  force  to  enter 
Kansas? 

11.  Give  an  account  of  the  second  attack  on  Osawatomie. 

12.  Name  the  Territorial  Governors  up  to  this  time. 

13.  Who  was  the  new  Governor?  How  did  he  describe  the  con- 
ditions that  he  found  in  Kansas? 

14.  How  was  Lawrence  threatened?    What  became  of  the  army? 

15.  When  did  the  period  of  violence  close? 

16.  What  condition  followed? 

17.  How  long  was  this  after  the  organization  of  the  Territory? 


CHAPTER  XI 

THE  PERIOD  OF  POLITICAL  CONTESTS 

The  Missourians  had  given  up  hope  of  conquering 
Kansas  by  force.  After  the  close  of  the  period  of  violence 
Beginning  of  the  contest  became  almost  entirely  a  po- 
the  political  litical  struggle  between  the  proslavery  and 

^^^  ^  *  the  free-state  settlers,  each  side  trying  to 

win  Kansas  by  securing  its  government.  The  next  few 
years  were  filled  with  conventions,  elections,  and  political 
schemes. 

The  second  Territorial  Legislature  met  at  Lecompton  in 
the  opening  days  of  1857.  Because  of  Governor  Geary's 
Governor  Geary  efforts  to  be  just  to  both  sides,  the  Legis- 
leaves  the  lature  did  everything  possible  to  annoy 

erntory  ^^^  harass  him.    The  free-state  men  rallied 

to  his  support,  but  conditions  soon  became  so  intolerable 
that  one  night  in  March,  after  having  been  in  office  about 
six  months,  he  made  a  hasty  escape  from  Kansas.  Gov- 
ernor Geary  had  found  Kansas  in  a  deplorable  condition 
and  left  it  not  greatly  improved,  but  he  had  attempted 
to  do  justice  to  all.  His  place  was  taken  by  Governor 
Walker,  who  arrived  in  May. 

Up  to  this  time  the  only  attempt  to  get  Kansas  admitted 
as  a  state  was  the  effort  of  the  free-state  men  under  the 
A  proslavery  Topeka  Constitution,  but  the  proslavery 
constitution  people  had  long  been  planning  to  draw  up 

prepared,  1857  ^  constitution  under  which  they  might 
secure  the  admission  of  Kansas  as  a  slave  state.      The 

(95) 


96  A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 

Territorial  Legislature  provided  for  a  constitutional  con- 
vention, which  met  at  Lecompton  in  September,  1857,  and 
prepared  what  was  called  the  Lecompton  Constitution. 

Two  important  events  were  to  take  place  in  the  fall  of 
1857;  the  election  of  a  new  Territorial  Legislature,  and 

The  first  free-  ^^^  ^^^^  ^^  ^^^  Lecompton  Constitution, 
state  Territorial  When  election  day  came.  United  States 
Legislature  troops  were  stationed  in  the  different  pre- 

<iincts  to  prevent  illegal  voting  and  invasions  from  Mis- 
souri. Under  Governor  Walker's  promise  of  a  fair  election, 
both  parties  voted  for  the  first  time  since  the  fraudulent 
election  in  the  spring  of  1855.  The  result  was  a  free- 
state  victory,  and  for  the  first  time  Kansas  was  to  have 
a  free-state  Legislature.  This  result  was  not  achieved 
without  many  protests  and  threats  from  the  proslavery 
people,  who  now  became  afraid  to  submit  their  Lecomp- 
ton Constitution  to  a  vote,  for  it  was  clear  that  the 
free-state  people  were  largely  in  the  majority  and  would 
defeat  it. 

After  a  number  of  meetings  and  debates  among  them- 
selves, the  proslavery  people  decided  to  get  around  this 
Fear  to  submit  difficulty  by  not  submitting  the  Constitu- 
the  Lecompton  tion  at  all,  but  by  offering  instead  these 
Constitution  ^^^  statements  to  choose  between:  ''The 

Constitution  with  slavery,"  or  ''The  Constitution  without 
.slavery." 

This  gave  the  free-state  people  no  chance  to  vote  against 
the  Constitution  as  a  whole,  and  of  course  their  indignation 
was  aroused.  The  election  was  held  in 
an  dectlon'''*^*^^  December,  1857.  The  free-state  men  re- 
fused to  vote,  and  after  several  meetings 
-and  a  special  session  of  their  new  free-state  Legislature  the 
iree-state  people  appointed  a  day  in  January,  1858,  for  an 


THE   PERIOD   OF   POLITICAL  CONTESTS  97 

election  tx)  decide  for  or  against  the  Constitution.  This 
time  the  proslavery  party  refused  to  vote.  Thus  each  side 
held  an  election  and  carried  its  point  by  a  big  majority. 

No  attention  was  paid  to  the  defeat  of  the  Constitution 
at  the  hands  of  the  free-state  people,  and  it  was  sent  to 
End  of  the  Congress.     After  a  long  discussion  Con- 

Lecompton  gress  attached  a  number  of  conditions  to 

Constitution  ^^^  Constitution  and  sent  it  back  to  Kansas 

to  be  voted  on  by  all  the  people.  Of  the  13,000  votes 
cast  at  this  election,  which  was  held  August  2, 1858,  more 
than  11,000  were  against  it.  This  ended  the  second  at- 
tempt to  get  Kansas  admitted  as  a  f  tate. 

While  the  Lecompton  Constitution  was  pending  in 
Congress,  the  free-state  people  concluded  that  it  was  time 
The  Leaven-  ^^^  them  to  try  their  hands  at  constitution 
worth  Consti-  making  again.  During  the  winter  and 
tution,  1858  gpj^j^g  ^f  jggg  ^j^^y  produced  the  Leaven- 

worth Constitution,  but  it  was  not  favorably  received  by 
the  people  of  Kansas  and  was  never  voted  on  by  either 
house  of  Congress. 

Practically  all  of  these  events  of  Territorial  history  oc- 
curred within  a  small  area.  With  Lawrence  as  a  center, 
Trouble  in  ^  circle  with  a  radius  of  thirty  miles  would 

southeastern  include  them  all.  Another  part  of  Kansas, 
Kansas  ^^^  southeastern,  including  what  is  now 

Miami,  Linn,  and  Bourbon  counties,  came  into  promi- 
nence at  this  time  and  showed  that  the  period  of  blood- 
shed was  not  yet  past.  The  southeastern  part  of  the 
Territory  had  been  settled  largely  by  proslavery  people, 
but  gradually  the  Northerners  began  to  come  in.  The  pro- 
slavery  people  frequently  made  raids  on  them,  the  free- 
state  settlers  retaliated,  and  southern  Kansas  was  soon  in 
the  midst  of  a  guerrilla  warfare.  The  free-state  people 
—1 


98  A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 

engaged  in  this  warfare  came  to  be  known  as  Jayhawk- 

ers.^   Their  leader  was  a  man  named  James  Montgomery. 

These  conditions  continued  until  in  the  spring  of  1858. 

While  the  Lecompton  and  Leavenworth  constitutions  were 

being  considered  in  the  Territory,  there 
Cyg'n^s'mtsstre  occurred  in  Linn  County  the  Marais  des 

Cygnes  massacre,  the  most  shocking  and 
bloody  event  of  the  whole  Territorial  period.  A  Southerner 
named  Hamelton  made  up  a  list  of  free-state  men  whom  he 
planned  to  seize  and  execute.  On  May  19,  almost  two 
years  to  the  day  after  the  Pottawatomie  massacre  by  John 
Brown,  Hamelton  with  a  gang  of  Missourians  captured 
eleven  of  the  free-state  men,  marched  them  to  a  near-by 
gulch,  lined  them  up  and  fired  a  volley.  Five  men  were 
killed,  five  were  wounded,  and  one  remained  unharmed. 
This  terrible  deed  created  great  excitement,  and  an  un- 
successful attemDt  was  made  to  capture  Hamelton  and 
his  men.^ 

Steps  were  taken  to  bring  about  a  more  settled  condition 
in  southeastern  Kansas.     Though  several  other  outrages 

^  ^         ,      J      took  place,  none  of  them  was  so  barbar- 
Order  restored  ,^     \/r       •      i       /-< 

ous  as  the  Marais  des  Cygnes  massacre, 

and  order  was  gradually  restored. 

During  the  trouble  over  the  Lecompton  Constitution  in 
the  closing  days  of  1857  Governor  Walker  was  compelled 
Proslavery  and  ^^  resign,  and  in  the  autumn  of  1858 
free-state  names  Governor  Denver,  who  succeeded  him, 
dropped  voluntarily  resigned.     Although   Denver 

was  the  fifth  Territorial  Governor,  he  was  the  first  one 

1.  The  origin  of  the  word  "Jayhawker"  is  uncertain,  though  a 
number  of  different  accounts  have  been  given  of  it.  In  recent  years 
the  term  has  come  to  be  applied  to  our  State  and  our  people,  and  it 
is  not  unusual  for  a  Kansan  to  be  spoken  of  as  a  **  Jayhawker." 

2.  One  of  Hamelton's  men  was  brought  to  justice  five  years 
later. 


THE   PERIOD  OF  POLITICAL  CONTESTS  99 

who  had  not  been  compelled  to  give  up  his  office.  This 
was  one  of  the  indications  that  better  days  were  begin- 
ning in  Kansas.  Lawlessness  was  practically  over.  The 
South  was  no  longer  hopeful  of  making  Kansas  a  slave 
state.  The  settlers  dropped  the  terms  proslavery  and 
free-state,  and  identified  themselves  with  the  National 
political  parties. 

In  the  summer  of  the  next  year,  1859,  a  fourth  consti- 
tutional convention  was  held  at  Wyandotte.  There  was 
The  Wyandotte  ^^^  ^^^  feeling  now  between  the  two  fac- 
Constitution,  tions,  and  the  members  of  this  convention 
^^^  were  from  both  political  parties.  Democrat 

and  Republican.  It  was  generally  conceded  by  this  time 
that  Kansas  was  to  be  a  free  state,  and  the  new  Consti- 
tution contained  the  words,  "There  shall  be  no  slavery  in 
this  State,  and  no  involuntary  servitude,  except  for  crime, 
whereof  the  party  shall  have  been  duly  convicted."  This 
was  called  the  Wyandotte  Constitution,  and  when  it  was 
submitted  to  the  people  in  the  fall  a  large  majority  of 
the  votes  were  cast  in  favor  of  it.     . 

But  the  question  was  not  yet  settled,  for  Congress  had 
to  vote  on  the  admission  of  Kansas  under  the  Wyandotte 
Kansas  admitted  Constitution.  These  events  took  place  in 
to  the  Union,        the  closing  days  of  1859,  only  a  little  more 

January  29,  1861    ^^^^  ^  ^^^^  ^^^^^^  ^j^^  beginning  of  the 

Civil  War.  Relations  between  the  North  and  the  South 
had  become  strained  almost  to  the  breaking  point.  The 
Congressmen  from  the  South  had  given  up  hope  of 
making  Kansas  a  slave  state,  but  they  were  certainly 
not  anxious  to  admit  it  as  a  free  state,  and  conse- 
quently a  year  passed  before  the  Wyandotte  Constitution 
of  Kansas  was  acted  upon.  Finally,  in  January,  1861, 
some  of  the  southern  states  seceded  from  the  Union  and 
their  representatives  and  senators  withdrew  from  Con- 


100  A   HISTORY  OP   KANSAS 

gress,  leaving  a  free-state  majority.  The  bill  for  the  ad- 
mission of  Kansas  under  the  Wyandotte  Constitution  was 
at  once  called  up  and  passed.  The  next  day  it  was 
signed  by  President  Buchanan,  and  on  January  29,  1861, 
Kansas  became  a  state. 

In  December,  1859,  shortly  after  the  people  had  voted 
to  adopt  the  Wyandotte  Constitution,  they  held  an  election 

to  choose  state  officers  to  act  whenever 
officer^s^  ^  Kansas  should  be  admitted  to  the  Union. 

For  Governor  they  chose  Dr.  Charles 
Robinson,  who  had  so  faithfully  served  the  free-state  cause 
throughout  the  long  but  successful  struggle.  The  first 
United  States  senators  from  Kansas  were  two  other  well- 
known  free-state  men,  James  H.  Lane  and  Samuel  C. 
Pomeroy.  The  Wyandotte  constitution  designated  To- 
peka  as  the  temporary  capital.  An  election  was  held  in 
November,  1861,  for  the  purpose  of  selecting  a  permanent 
capital.  Topeka  received  7996  votes,  Lawrence  5291, 
and  all  other  places  1184.  Thus  Topeka  became  the 
capital  of  Kansas. 

SUMMARY 

The  first  two  and  a  half  years  of  the  Territorial  period 
were  spent  in  the  warfare  which  was  practically  closed 
when  Governor  Geary  sent  ''the  2700"  home.  The  last 
four  months  of  the  two  and  a  half  years  formed  the 
"period  of  violence. '^  The  next  three  years  were  given  to 
the  political  struggle  which  ended  with  the  adoption  of  the 
Wyandotte  Constitution.  During  the  remaining  year  the 
people  went  about  their  work,  while  this  Constitution  was 
pending  in  Congress.  In  1857,  early  in  the  poUtical 
period,  the  free-state  people  succeeded,  for  the  first  time, 
in  electing  the  Legislature.  The  proslavery  people  pre- 
pared the  Lecompton  Constitution,  but  submitted  to 
the  people  only  two  statements  concerning  it.  The 
free-state  people  refused  to  vote,  but  held  another  elec- 
tion, at  which  the  proslavery  people  refused  to  vote. 


THE   PERIOD  OF   POUTIi/AL  CONTESTS  101 

After  the  Lecompton  Constitution  was  returned  from 
Congress  it  was  voted  on  by  both  factions  and  defeated. 
In  the  meantime  the  free-state  people  submitted  the 
Leavenworth  Constitution,  which  was  defeated.  During 
the  last  six  months  of  the  political  period  the  Wyandotte 
Constitution  was  prepared,  adopted,  and  sent  to  Congress. 
This  was  in  1859.  More  than  a  year  passed  before  Con- 
gress acted  on  the  matter:  then,  January  29,  1861.  Kansas 
became  a  state. 

REFERENCES 

Spring,  Kansas. 

Robinson,  The  Kansas  Conflict. 

Mrs.  Robinson,  Kansas — Its  Interior  and  Exterior  Life. 
Holloway,  History  of  Kansas. 
Prentis,  History  of  Kansas,  pp.  107-143. 
Muzzey,  American  History,  pp.  379-412. 
Andreas,  History  of  Kansas,  pp.  155-179. 
Ingalls,  Writings,  pp.  443-465. 

Historical  Collections,  vol.  vi,  p.  365;  vol.  vill,  pp.  331,  443; 
voL  X,  pp.  169,  216;  vol.  xi,  p.  47;  vol.  xii,  p.  331. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  How  long  was  Kansas  a  territory  ?  Into  what  periods  may 
tlvis  time  be  divided  ? 

2.  Was  Lecompton  a  proslavery  or  a  free-state  town  ?  Of 
which  faction  was  the  second  Legislature  ?  How  did  the  Legisla- 
ture treat  Governor  Geary  ?     Who  succeeded  him  ? 

3.  What  was  the  result  of  the  election  for  a  third  Territorial 
Legislature  ? 

4.  When  and  by  whom  was  the  Lecompton  Constitution  made  ? 
Why  was  it  not  submitted  as  a  whole  ?    What  became  of  it  ? 

5.  Give  an  account  of  the  Leavenworth  Constitution. 

6.  Within  about  what  area  did  all  these  events  occur  ?  Show 
this  on  a  map  of  Kansas. 

7.  Give  an  account  of  the  troubles  in  southeastern  Kansas. 
Who  were  the  Jayhawkers  ? 

8.  Give  an  account  of  the  Marais  des  Cygnes  massacre. 

9.  What  were  the  conditions  in  Kansas  by  the  opening  of  1859  ? 

10.  What  was  the  last  constitution  made  in  Kansas  ?  When 
and  by  whom  was  it  made  ? 

11.  When  was  Kansas  admitted  to  the  Union  ? 

12.  Who  was  the  first  State  Governor  ? 

13.  How  was  the  State  capital  selected  ?  r 


102  A   HJSXORY  OF   KANSAS 


THE  HOMES  OF  KANSAS 

The  cabin  homes  of  Kansas! 

How  modestly  they  stood, 
Along  the  sunny  hillsides, 

Or  nestled  in  the  wood. 
They  sheltered  men  and  women, 

Brave-hearted  pioneers; 
Each  one  became  a  landmark 

Of  Freedom's  trial  years. 

The  sod-built  homes  of  Kansas! 

Though  built  of  mother  earth, 
Within  their  walls  so  humble 

Are  souls  of  sterling  worth. 
Though  poverty  and  struggle 

May  be  the  builder's  lot, 
The  sod  house  is  a  castle 

Where  failure  enters  not. 

The  dugout  homes  of  Kansas' 

The  lowliest  of  all, 
They  hold  the  homestead  title 

As  firm  as  marble  hall. 
Those  dwellers  in  the  cavern. 

Beneath  the  storms  and  snows. 
Shall  make  the  desert  places 

To  blossom  as  the  rose. 

The  splendid  homes  of  Kansas! 

How  proudly  now  they  stand 
Amid  the  fields  and  orchards. 

All  o'er  the  smiling  land. 
They  rose  up  where  the  cabins 

Once  marked  the  virgin  soil, 
And  are  the  fitting  emblems 

Of  patient  years  of  toil. 

God  bless  the  homes  of  Kansas! 

From  poorest  to  the  best; 
The  cabin  of  the  border. 

The  sod  house  of  the  west; 
The  dugout,  low  and  lonely, 

The  mansion,  grand  and  great; 
The  hands  that  laid  their  hearthstones 

Have  built  a  mighty  State. 

— Sol  Miller. 


CHAPTER  XII 

PIONEER   LIFE 

The  seven  Territorial  years  had  brought  freedom  to 
Kansas,  but  the  struggle  had  left  the  pioneers  little  time 
Comforts  of  life  ^^  strength  for  building  better  homes,  im- 
receive  litUe  proving  their  farms,  or  establishing  pub- 
attention  j.^  institutions.  The  energy  that  might 
have  accomplished  these  things  had  been  given  to  fight- 


A  Dugout. 

ing  and  to  politics.  When  Kansas  became  a  state,  the 
people  had  almost  as  few  of  the  comforts  of  life  as  when 
they  first  came  to  the  Territory.     A  few  of  them  had  come 

(103) 


104 


A  HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 


with  little  idea  of  the  hardships  and  privations  of  fron- 
tier life,  and  others  had  believed  that  such  conditions 
would  last  but  a  short  time.  Many  of  these,  of  course, 
grew  discouraged  and  returned  to  their  eastern  homes. 
But  the  great  body  of  Kansas  pioneers  had  come  with  the 
twofold  purpose  of  securing  homes  and  of  making  a  free 
state  and  were  not  to  be  discouraged.  They  had  come 
to  stay. 


In  Pioneer  Days. 

Frontier  life  is  always  hard,  but  it  was  made  many  times 
harder  in  Kansas  by  the  years  of  strife  and  warfare.  The 
Conditions  of  inconveniences  and  hardships  were  espe- 
living  during  cially  severe  outside  the  towns.  In  these 
*  ®  ^^®  days  of  railways  and  good  roads,  of  the 

telegraph  and  the  telephone,  it  is  difficult  to  realize 
what  life  on  the  prairies  meant  in  the  '50's.  Post  offices 
and  mail  routes  came  slowly,  and  for  many  of  the  settlers 


PIONEER   LIFE  105 

a  trip  for  mail  and  provisions  meant  a  journey  of  two  or 
three  days,  or  even  longer,  with  an  ox  team.  Neighbors 
were  often  many  miles  apart.  Nearly  every  one's  sup- 
ply of  farming  implements  was  scanty,  and  to  replace 
a  broken  ax  might  require  a  trip  of  from  twenty-five  to 
fifty  miles.  In  the  winter  these  journeys  were  often 
accompanied  with  danger  and  suffering.  Streams  were 
without  bridges  and  many  of  the  fords  were  deep  and 
treacherous.  Fences  were  few  and  roads  were  mere  trails 
over  the  prairies,  so  when  the  blizzard  swept  across  the 
country,  piling  its  drifts  of  snow  and  obliterating  every 
landmark,  the  unfortunate  traveler  was  in  great  danger 
of  losing  his  way.  Getting  a  farm  under  cultivation  was 
slow  work  at  best.  Since  most  of  the  settlers  brought 
but  little  money  with  them  they  had  to  trust  to  raising 
a  crop,  and  if  sickness  or  drouth  or  raids  made  it  impos- 
sible to  raise  the  crop,  want  and  suffering  followed. 

The  privations,  the  sacrifices,  and  the  loneliness  of 
pioneer  life  fell  most  heavily  on  the  women.  Business  and 
necessity  brought  the  men  together  occasionally,  but  the 
pioneer  woman  in  the  isolation  of  her  prairie  home  often 
saw  no  friendly  face  for  months  at  a  time.  There  was 
much  sickness  and  death,  especially  among  women  and 
children,  resulting  from  the  combination  of  poor  food,  un- 
comfortable houses,  homesickness,  and  excitement  arising 
from  the  many  dangers.  The  cost  of  transportation  was 
so  great  that  only  the  most  necessary  articles  were  brought 
from  the  East.  Most  furniture  was  home-made  and  cook- 
ing was  done  over  an  open  fireplace.  Com  bread  and  bacon 
with  occasional  game  and  wild  fruits  were  the  usual  foods. 
In  wet  seasons  there  was  much  fever  and  ague.  Sometimes 
a  whole  family  would  be  sick  at  the  same  time,  with  no 
neighbors  near  enough  to  help  and  no  physician  within 
many  miles. 


106 


A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 


,.^M:imii^iiMMMMmem 


MiisssafisiiiiSssMiSsta 


A  Sod  House. 


Each  year  during  the  Territorial  period  the  crops  raised 
were  barely  sufficient  to  keep  the  people  through  the 

winter.  There  was  no  surplus  at  any  time, 
isse^Go"*^  ""^       a^d  when  the  summer  of  1859  brought  a 

drouth,  a  famine  resulted.  Through  all 
the  hard  struggle  the  people  had  believed  that  as  soon  as 
the  strife  and  political  difficulties  were  over,  prosperity 
would  come.  However,  with  the  dawning  of  peace  in  the 
Territory  there  came  the  most  severe  drouth  that  has  ever 
been  known  in  the  West.  It  began  in  June,  1859,  and 
from  that  time  until  November,  1860,  a  period  of  more 
than  sixteen,  months,  not  enough  rain  fell  at  any  one  time 
to  wet  the  earth  to  a  depth  of  more  than  two  inches.  Two 
light  snows  fell  during  the  winter,  but  neither  was  heavy 
enough  to  cover  the  ground.  The  ground  became  so  dry 
that  it  broke  open  in  great  cracks,  wells  and  springs  went 
dry,  and  the  crops  were  a  total  failure. 


PIONEER   UFE  107 

There  were,  at  this  time,  nearly  100,000  people  in  Kan- 
sas, and  to  fully  60,000  of  them  the  drouth  finally  meant 
Effect  of  the  ^^^^  ^^^^  must  receive  help  or  starve. 
drouth  on  They  had  been  able  to  fight  border  ruffians, 

Kansas  settlers     ^^^  ^^^^  ^^^j ^  ^^^  ^^y^^  starvation.    After 

a  year  of  the  drouth  they  began  to  give  up  and  go  back 
East.  During  the  fall  of  1860  no  fewer  than  30,000  set- 
tlers abandoned  their  claims  and  the  improvements  that 
had  been  made  at  the  expense  of  so  much  labor,  and  left 
Kansas.  There  were  still  30,000  people  here  for  whom 
charity  was  necessary.  All  this  brought  bitter  disappoint- 
ment to  the  people  who  had  come  to  Kansas  with  high 
hopes  and  willing  hands. 

As  soon  as  the  true  condition  of  affairs  was  known  in  the 
East  a  movement  was  begun  for  the  relief  of  the  sufferers. 
Many  states  responded  liberally,  and  im- 
the  Ea^t  ^^^  mense  quantities  of  provisions  and  clothes 
were  sent  here  to  be  distributed.  Hundreds 
of  bushels  of  seed  wheat  were  furnished.  Besides  all  of 
the  public  help,  many  relatives  and  friends  sent  supplies 
to  the  pioneers.  Nevertheless,  there  were  many  that 
winter  who  barely  escaped  starvation. 

Great  as  was  the  suffering  from  disappointment  and 
want,  the  drouth  brought  another  evil;  it  threw  Kansas 
Drouth  retards  ^^^^  ^^  i^  development.  Not  only  had  a 
development  of  third  of  the  population  left  the  Territory, 
but  the  accounts  given  by  those  who  re- 
turned tended  to  discourage  others  from  coming.  The 
old  stories  about  the  "Great  American  Desert '*  were 
revived.  Kansas  was  looked  upon  as  a  place  of  drouth 
and  famine,  and  for  several  years  the  number  of  immi- 
grants was  much  decreased. 

All  this  was  taking  place  while  the  Wyandotte  Consti- 


108  A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 

tution  was  being  considered.    Kansas  was  admitted  as  a 
state  on  January  29, 1861,  at  the  close  of 
begins'*''^  the  terrible  drouth.    Through  the  winter 

and  spring  of  1861  supplies  continued  to 
come  in  from  other  states,  and  included  seeds  for  the 
spring  planting.  An  excellent  season  followed.  It  might 
be  thought  that  at  last  the  Kansas  settlers  were  to  have  an 
opportunity  to  cultivate  their  farms,  build  homes,  and 
make  their  new  State  a  place  of  peace  and  prosperity.  But 
not  so;  Kansas  was  again  to  suffer  from  the  troubles  of  the 
Nation.    The  opening  of  the  Civil  War  was  near. 

SUMMARY 

The  fighting  and  political  strife  of  the  Territorial  period 
left  the  people  little  opportunity  for  building  up  the 
country.  Statehood  found  frontier  life  but  little  improved. 
The  early  settlers  came  to  secure  homes  and  to  make 
Kansas  a  free  state,  and  were  not  easily  discouraged.  The 
drouth  of  1859-^60  caused  nearly  a  third  of  the  100,000 
Kansas  settlers  to  leave  the  Territory,  and  another  third 
had  to  be  given  aid  from  the  East.  Immigration  to  Kan- 
sas was  greatly  decreased  for  a  time.  A  good  crop  year 
followed,  but  Kansas  had  yet  to  pass  through  the  Civil 
War  before  it  could  enjoy  peace. 

REFERENCES 

Andreas,  History  of  Kansas,  County  Histories. 

Cordley,  Pioneering  in  Kansas. 

Hunt,  Kansas  History  for  Children. 

Historical  Collections,  vol.  ix,  pp.  33,  126;  vol.  xii,  p.  353. 

Mrs.  Robinson,  Kansas— Its  Interior  and  Exterior  Life. 

Ropes,  Six  Months  in  Kansas. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  What  had  been  the  chief  interest  of  the  Kansas  people  dur- 
ing the  Territorial  period  ? 

2.  What  were  the  chief  reasons  for  people  coming  to  Kansas  ? 

3.  Discuss  the  conditions  under  which  the  pioneers  lived,  in- 
cluding travel,  roads,  bridges,  fences,  money,  social  life,  houses, 
furniture,  food,  and  health. 


PIONEER  LIFE  109 

4.  Give  an  account  of  the  drouth  of  1 859-' 60.       How  long  did 
it  last? 

5.  What  was  the  population  of  Kansas  in  1860  ? 

6.  What  was  the  effect  of  the  drouth  on  Kansas  ? 

7.  What  have  you  read  of  pioneer  conditions  other  than  in  this 
book? 

8.  What  have  you  learned  about  early  Kansas  conditions  from 
talking  with  people  ? 

9.  What  new  burden  came  with  the  beginning  of  statehood  ? 


110 


A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS. 


Underwood  &  Underwood,  N.  Y. 


**  *A  house  divided  against  itself  cannot  stand.' 
I  believe  this  government  cannot  endure  perma- 
nently half  slave  and  half  free.  I  do  not  expect 
the  Union  to  be  dissolved;  I  do  not  expect  the 
house  to  fall;  but  I  do  expect  it  will  cease  to  be 
divided."  — Abraham  Lincoln. 


CHAPTER  XIII 

KANSAS  IN  THE  CIVIL  WAR 

Just  before  Kansas  was  admitted  several  of  the  south- 
em  states  seceded  from  the  Union.  The  trouble  between 
the  North  and  the  South  had  reached  the 
SiVcivir  War  ^^^  where  it  could  no  longer  be  compro- 
mised. Other  states  seceded,  and  when, 
on  April  12,  1861,  Fort  Sumter  was  fired  upon,  the  Civil 
War  had  begun. 

A  state  that  had  just  passed  through  nearly  seven  years 
of  territorial  struggle  closing  with  a  famine  would  hardly 
Part  taken  by  ^^  expected  to  take  an  active  part  in  a 
Kansas  in  the  great  war,  but  the  Kansas  people  had  been 
*^       **"  battling  over  the  slavery  question,  and, 

being  deeply  interested  in  the  outcome,  were  ready  to 
take  up  arms  in  defense  of  the  principle  cf  freedom. 
Every  call  for  soldiers  to  defend  the  Union  was  liberally 
responded  to  in  Kansas.  This  State  furnished  more 
soldiers  in  proportion  to  its  population  than  did  any  other 
state.  During  the  four  years  cf  the  war  Kansas  furnished 
a  few  more  than  twenty  thousand  men,  nearly  four 
thousand  more  than  were  asked  for,  and  all  of  them  were 
volunteers.  The  poverty  in  the  Kansas  homes  made  it 
especially  hard  for  families  to  be  left  unprovided  for,  and 
as  much  honor  is  due  the  women  who  stayed  at  home  to 
work  as  is  due  the  men  who  marched  away  to  fight.  The 
Kansas  soldiers  did  duty  on  many  battle-fields,  and  so 
conducted  themselves  as  to  bring  much  credit  to  their 

(111) 


112  A  HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 

State.  During  the  war  Kansas  was  exposed  to  three  lines 
of  danger;  invasions  by  the  regular  Confederate  army, 
attacks  by  the  unorganized  border  troops,  and  Indian 
raids  on  the  frontier. 

For  Kansas  people  the  Civil  War  meant  a  continuation 
of  the  border  troubles.  Gangs  of  ruffians  plundered  and 
The  Quantrill  destroyed  property,  and  frequently  com- 
raid,  August  21,  mitted  worse  crimes.  These  acts  reached 
a  climax  in  the  destruction  of  Lawrence 
on  August  21,  1863.  The  raid  on  Lawrence  was  led  by 
Quantrill,  a  border  ruffian  who  had  taken  an  active  part 
in  the  guerrilla  warfare,  and  who  with  his  men  had  sacked 
several  smaller  towns  along  the  border.  With  about 
four  hundred  and  fifty  mounted  men  Quantrill  crossed  the 
border  in  the  late  afternoon  of  August  20,  and  proceeded 
toward  Lawrence.  Just  before  sunrise  the  raiders  reached 
a  hill  only  a  mile  from  the  town.  It  is  strange  that  they 
could  have  made  the  ride  of  forty  miles  through  Kansas 
settlements  without  a  word  of  warning  reaching  Lawrence, 
but  such  was  the  case.  When  Quantrill  and  his  men 
halted  within  pistol  shot  of  the  houses  of  Lawrence  to 
plan  their  attack,  the  people  suspected  no  danger.  There 
was  no  armed  organization  within  the  city,  and  all  fire- 
arms were  locked  in  the  arsenal. 

The  attack  began  with  a  wild  charge  on  the  town. 
Horsemen  rode  through  the  streets  at  top  speed,  shooting 
in  every  direction.  Then  they  divided  into  small  gangs 
and  scattered  over  the  town  under  orders  to  "bum  every 
house  and  kill  every  man."  The  horror  of  what  followed 
has  seldom  been  equaled  in  the  warfare  of  civilized 
people.  When  the  people  of  Lawrence  realized  that  their 
town  was  in  the  possession  of  Quantrill's  band  they  ex- 
pected that  it  would  be  burned  and  a  few  prominent  citizens 
killed,  but  wholesale  murder  was  not  looked  for,  and  many 


KANSAS  IN   THE  CIVIL  WAR  113 

who  might  have  escaped  remained  and  were  killed.  For 
four  hours  the  ruffians  robbed  buildings,  shot  the  occu- 
pants, and  applied  the  torch.  Every  house  was  a  scene  cf 
brutality  or  of  remarkable  escape.  When  the  work  cf 
butchery  and  destruction  was  finished,  Quantrill  and  his 
men  retreated  toward  Missouri,  mounted  on  stolen  horses 
and  heavily  laden  with  plunder.  They  kept  up  their  work 
of  destruction  by  burning  farmhouses  as  they  passed.  A 
few  troops  followed  them,  but  the  raiders  escaped  across 
the  border. 

The  number  of  lives  lost  can  never  be  known  with 
certainty,  but  it  was  about  one  hundred  and  fifty.  Many 
were  seriously  wounded.  The  loss  cf 
theraid  "*  property  was  variously  estimated  from  one 

to  two  million  dollars.  The  work  cf  re- 
building the  town  was  immediately  begun,  and  with  all 
their  poverty  the  people  of  the  State  gave  generously  to 
the  stricken  citizens  of  Lawrence. 

Kansas  was  too  far  away  from  the  center  cf  conflict  cf 
the  Civil  War  to  become  the  scene  of  great  battles,  but  it 

General  Price  ^^  ^^^"^  ^^^^  ^^  ^^^^  threatened  with  in- 
threatens  vasion  by  the  regular  Confederate  army. 

ansas  During  the  last  year  cf  the  war.  General 

Price,  with  a  large  Confederate  fcrce,  marched  north- 
ward through  Arkansas  into  Missouri.  When  it  was 
reported  that  he  was  moving  westward,  Kansas  issued 
a  call  for  more  soldiers.  The  response  was  immediate. 
More  than  16,000  men  appeared  for  service.  A  fcrce  of 
Kansas  troops  marched  into  Missouri  and  met  Price's 
army  in  battle  at  Lexington.  As  the  armies  moved  west- 
ward other  battles  were  fought  at  the  Little  Blue  and  at 
the  Big  Blue,  and  again  at  Kansas  City  and  Westport, 
after  which  Price  was  forced  to  retreat  southward.  He 
was  followed  by  the  Union  army.    He  crossed  into  Kan- 


114 


A   HISTORY   OF   KANSAS 


sas  in  Linn  County,  and  skirmishes  took  place  at  Trading 
Post  Ford,  at  the  Mounds,  and  at  Mine  Creek.  Price 
was  then  forced  into  Missouri  again,  where  he  was  soon 
defeated. 

In  April,  1865,  the  great  war  came  to  a  close,  after  last- 
ing almost  exactly  four  years.     The  questions  of  slavery 

and  disunion  were  finally  settled.  The 
Wa^r,''l865  ^*''"    whole  nation  was  thankful  to  lay  down  its 

arms  and  go  back  home,  ''to  drop  the 
sword  and  grasp  the  plow,''  but  this  was  especially  true 
of  Kansas,  where  the  people  had  been  doing  battle  over 
the  slavery  question  for  eleven  years.  The  Territorial  pe- 
riod and  the  Civil  War  period  made  one  continuous  conflict. 


The  counties  of  Kansas  at  the  close  of  the  Civil  War. 

With  the  heavy  drain  on  resources  and  population,  it  was 
not  to  be  expected  that  Kansas  would  make  much  growth 
or  progress  during  the  Civil  War.  Development  could 
little  more  than  equal  waste  and  loss.  The  population  of 
Kansas  numbered  about  100,000  at  the  beginning  of  the 
war,  and  about  136,000  at  the  close.  There  had  been  little 
improvement  in  the  manner  of  living  during  the  four 
years. 


KANSAS  IN   THE  CIVIL  WAR  116 

SUMMARY 

The  Civil  War  began  within  three  months  after  Kansas 
became  a  state.  Although  Kansas  had  had  no  opportunity 
to  recover  from  the  Territorial  struggle,  it  took  an  active 
part  in  the  war.  General  Price  threatened  to  invade 
Kansas  with  a  large  Confederate  force,  but  did  not  suc- 
ceed. The  Indians  committed  depredations  on  the  western 
frontier.  The  worst  feature  of  the  war  was  the  border 
trouble,  of  which  the  Quantrill  raid  was  the  climax.  Dur- 
ing the  four  years  of  the  Civil  War  Kansas  did  not  make 
a  large  gain  in  population  or  in  progress. 

REFERENCES 

Andreas,  History  of  Kansas,  pp.  179-215. 
Blackmar,  Life  of  Robinson. 
Crawford,  Kansas  in  the  Sixties. 
Cordley,  History  of  Lawrence. 
Connelley,  Quantrill  and  the  Border  Wars. 
Historical  Collections,  vol.  viil,  pp.  271,  352;  vol.  IX,  pp.  430, 
455;  vol.  XI,  p.  217;  vol.  v,  p.  116;  vol.  vi,  pp.  305,  317. 
Prentis,  History  of  Kansas,  pp.  143-168. 
Spring,  Kansas,  chap.  xiil. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  When  did  the  Civil  War  begin?  How  long  was  this  after 
Kansas  had  become  a  state? 

2.  What  part  did  Kansas  take  in  the  war?     Explain. 

3.  What  were  the  three  classes  of  danger  to  which  Kansas  was 
exposed?     Discuss  each. 

4.  To  which  of  these  does  the  Price  campaign  belong? 

5.  Who  was  General  Price?  Give  an  account  of  his  threatened 
invasion  of  Kansas. 

6.  Who  was  Quantrill?  Give  an  account  of  his  raid  on  Law- 
rence. 

7.  How  long  did  the  Civil  War  last? 

8.  How  long  had  it  been  since  Kansas  was  opened  for  settle- 
ment?    What  progress  had  been  made? 

9.  What  was  the  population  of  Kansas  in  1865? 


It  has  long  been  customary  for  each  nation  to  have  a  great 
seal.  The  United  States  has  one,  as  has  also  each  of  the  states.  A 
seal  is  used  to  make  an  impression  on  a  document  as  a  sign  of  its 
genuineness.  The  design  for  the  Great  Seal  of  Kansas  was  adopted 
by  the  first  State  Legislature.  The  thirty-four  stars  represent  the 
thirty-four  states  comprising  the  Union  at  that  time.  The  scene  is 
supposed  to  typify  the  settlement  and  growth  of  the  State.  The 
motto  "Ad  astra  per  aspera,''  meaning  "  To  the  stars  through  diffi- 
culties," is  peculiarly  descriptive  of  the  state's  history. 


CHAPTER  XIV 
THE  HALF  CENTURY  SINCE  THE  CIVIL  WAR 

A  half  century  has  passed  since  the  close  of  the  Civil 
War;  a  half  century  of  work,  growth,  and  progress.  The 
Beginning  earlier  years  in  Kansas  were  but  a  time  of 

of  the  preparation,  and  with  the  end  of  the  war 

century  ^j^^  people  were  at  last  free  to  turn  their 

attention  to  farming  or  to  other  occupations.  Hundreds 
of  new  settlers  poured  into  the  State  each  year.  Little 
pioneer  homes  dotted  the  eastern  part  of  the  State  more 
and  more  thickly  and  the  line  of  settlement  moved  rapidly 
westward. 

As  the  white-topped  wagons  of  the  immigrants  became 
more  numerous  the  Indian  and  the  buffalo  were  pushed 
farther  on.  But  the  red  man  did  not  give 
on^the  fronUer  ^P  ^^  hunting  ground  without  a  struggle. 
The  encroachments  of  the  settlers  had  long 
been  resented.  Even  before  the  close  of  the  Civil  War, 
while  the  soldiers  were  needed  elsewhere,  the  Indians  had 
begun  their  depredations  on  the  frontier.  In  18€5  and 
1866  settlements  were  attacked  in  Republic  and  Cloud 
counties,  stock  was  driven  away,  much  property  was 
destroyed,  and  a  number  of  people  were  killed.  The  few 
settlers  on  their  scattered  claims  were  poorly  armed,  and, 
with  no  soldiers  near  to  protect  them,  they  were  in  con- 
stant fear  of  wandering  tribes  of  hostile  Indians. 

The  next  year  United  States  troops  were  sent  to  pro- 
tect the  frontier.  They  drove  the  Indians  back  and  de- 
stroyed one  of  their  villages.     This  only  made  the  red 

(117) 


7 


118  A  HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 

men  eager  for  revenge,  and  they  began  an  open  war  on 

all  settlers,  emigrant  trains,  traders,  and 
SeTndianr*'^      travelers.     Robberies  and   murders  were 

committed  along  the  whole  frontier,  par- 
ticularly in  the  Republican,  Solomon,  and  Smoky  Hill 
valleys,  and  in  Marion,  Butler  and  Greenwood  counties. 
Travel  over  the  Santa  Fe  and  other  westward  trails  almost 
ceased  and  the  line  of  settlement  was  pushed  eastward 
many  miles.  Many  tribes  engaged  in  these  attacks. 
They  dashed  into  the  State  from  north  or  south  or  west^ 
committed  their  cruelties,  and  were  gone. 

At  one  time  the  Government  made  a  treaty  with  several 
tribes  by  which  they  were  removed  to  a  reservation  in 

the  Indian  Territory,  but  were  to  have 
Seaty"^***"^"  the  privilege  of  hunting  in  Kansas  as  far 

north  as  the  Arkansas  River,  and  were  also 
to  be  provided  with  arms.  They  kept  their  promise  of 
peace  only  until  they  could  get  ready  for  another  attack, 
and  while  part  of  them  were  being  supplied  with  arms  at 
one  of  the  forts  the  rest  were  engaged  in  a  most  heartless 
and  bloody  raid  on  the  northwestern  settlements. 

This  led  Governor  Crawford  to  organize  several  com- 
panies of  Kansas  volunteers  and  to  ask  for  more  United 

States  soldiers.  Later  a  regiment  of  Kan- 
subdued*^'*^  sas  volunteer  cavalry  was  called  for,  and 

on  November  4, 1868,  Governor  Crawford 
resigned  his  office  to  take  command  of  this,  the  Nineteenth 
Regiment.  After  considerable  fighting  the  Indians  were 
finally  subdued,  and  by  1870  the  trouble  was  practically 
ended.  There  were  a  few  outbreaks  from  time  to  time,  but 
none  of  them  was  very  serious.  During  this  contest, 
which  had  lasted  from  1864  to  1869,  the  lives  of  more  than 
a  thousand  Kansas  settlers  had  been  lost,  a  great  deal  of 


THE   HALF  CENTURY   SINCE  THE   CIVIL   WAR       119 

property  had  been  destroyed,  and  the  westward  movement 
of  settlement  had  been  greatly  retarded. 

Shortly  after  the  admission  of  Kansas  to  the  Union, 
Congress  passed  a  measure  that  had  a  wonderful  effect  on 
the  growth  of  the  State.  This  measure 
Law.^sS^**^**'  was  the  Homestead  Law,  passed  in  1862. 
This  law  provides  that  any  person  who  is 
the  head  of  a  family,  or  who  is  twenty-one  years  of  age,  and 
who  is  a  citizen  of  the  United  States  or  has  declared  his 
intention  to  become  such,  may  acquire  a  tract  of  one 
hundred  and  sixty  acres  of  public  land  on  condition  of 
settlement,  cultivation,  and  occupancy  as  a  home  for  a 
period  of  five  years,  and  on  payment  of  certain  moderate 
fees.  It  also  provides  that  the  time  that  any  settler  has 
served  in  the  army  or  navy  may  be  deducted  from  the  five 
years.  Previous  to  1862  settlers  bought  their  claims  of  the 
Government.  The  liberal  provisions  of  the  Homestead 
Law  attracted  thousands  of  settlers  to  Kansas.  Many  of 
the  newcomers  were  young  men  who  had  been  in  the 
army.^  Many  of  them  were  foreigners  newly  arrived  in 
America,  while  thousands  of  others  came  from  the  eastern 
or  central  states.  Nearly  all  of  them  were  poor.  Many 
had  scarcely  enough  to  provide  for  themselves  until  the 
harvesting  of  their  first  crop.  But  they  were  full  of  hope 
and  ambition,  and  were  willing  to  undertake  the  toil  and 
privations  of  pioneer  life  for  the  chance  to  make  real  their 
dreams  of  a  home  on  the  Kansas  prairies. 

The  task  of  turning  the  bare  plains  into  fertile  fields 
was  a  heavy  one,  and  the  brave  people  who  began  it  en- 
Many  drouths  dured  many  hardships  and  met  many  dis- 
in  the  early  couragements   and  disappointments.    Se- 

^^^^^  vere  drouths  were  of  frequent  occurrence 

1.  A  census  taken  in  1885  disclosed  the  fact  that  nearly  100,000 
Kansans  had  served  in  the  Union  army. 


A  HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 


A  Prairie  Stream,  common  in  the  western  part  of  the  State. 

in  the  early  days  and  hot  winds  often  swept  across  the 
country.  The  year  1869  was  dry,  with  a  partial  failure  of 
crops,  and  in  1874  came  a  long  dry  spell  followed  in  the 
late  summer  by  a  scourge  of  grasshoppers. 

At  different  times  there  had  been  invasions  of  grass- 
hoppers  in  the  country  west  of  the  Mississippi  River,  but 
none  of  them  was  so  disastrous  as  the  one 
^vLfonfisrr'  of  1874.  The  grasshoppers,  which  were  a 
kind  of  locust,  came  into  the  State  from  the 
northwest  and  moved  toward  the  southeast.  The  air  was 
filled  with  them.  They  covered  the  fields  and  trees  and 
destroyed  everything  green  as  they  went.  They  left  ruin 
and  desolation  in  their  pathway.  In  the  western  counties, 
where  the  settlements  were  new  and  the  people  had  no 
crops  laid  by  to  depend  upon,  the  result  was  much  like 


THE   HALF  CENTURY   SINCE   THE  CIVIL   WAR  121 


A  Timbered  Stream,  common  in  the  eastern  and  central  parts  of 
the  State. 

that  of  the  terrible  years  of  1859  and  I860.  By  the  time 
of  the  invasion  there  were  more  people,  more  provisions, 
and  more  money,  and  the  State  was  able  to  do  much 
to  help  the  thousands  of  its  citizens  who  were  left  desti- 
tute. It  became  necessary,  however,  to  accept  aid  from 
the  East  again,  and  thousands  of  dollars  and  many  car- 
loads of  supplies  were  distributed  to  the  needy.  Never 
since  has  Kansas  had  to  ask  for  help.  In  more  recent 
years  our  State  has  given  generously  to  sufferers  in  other 
states  and  in  other  lands. 

This  visit  of  the  grasshoppers  was  prolonged  into  the 
next  year,  for  they  had  deposited  their  eggs  in  the  ground 
and  the  next  spring  large  numbers  of  young  grasshoppers 
hatched.      These    destroyed    the   early   crops,    but   for 


'liiiijiiiiiiiiiiiifiiiffiiiiiiriiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiifiiiiffifitiy 


State  Governors,  1861-1877 


THE  HALF  CENTURY  SINCE  THE  CIVIL  WAR       123 

some  unaccountable  reason  they  soon  rose  into  the  air  and 
flew  back  toward  the  northwest  whence  the  swarms  of  the 
year  before  had  come.  There  was  still  time  for  late  plant- 
ing, and  the  crops  of  1875  were  abundant. 

The  coming  of  the  grasshoppers  had  tem.porarily  dis- 
couraged immigration,  but  prosperous  years  followed  and 
Prosperous  years  P^ople  were  again  attracted  to  Kansas, 
follow  the  grass-  More  of  the  prairie  was  turned  into  farms; 
hopper  invasion  ^^^  towns  sprang  up;  the  country  came 
to  be  more  thickly  settled;  railroads,  schools  and  churches 
were  built;  new  counties  were  organized;  and  the  old 
stories  of  "The  Great  American  Desert"  were  gradually 
forgotten.    Kansas  was  taking  her  place  am.ong  the  states. 

In  order  that  this  great  result  mJght  te  acccnrplished, 
that  the  Kansas  of  to-day  might  te,  a  generaticn  of  men 
and  women  had  to  conquer  these  vast 
LmerV^*  *"'^  prairies- prairies  that  were  swept  by  bliz- 
zards, parched  by  drouths,  scorched  by 
hot  winds,  and  scourged  by  grasshoppers.  A  few  of  the 
pioneers  gave  up  and  returned  to  their  old  homes,  but 
most  of  them  were  of  the  sturdy  type  and  remained,  al- 
ways believing  that  the  day  of  better  things  was  to  come. 
Though  they  had  little  money  and  few  of  the  comforts  and 
conveniences  of  life,  and  though  they  were  often  filled  with 
homesickness  for  the  friends  and  scenes  they  had  left  be- 
hind, they  stayed  and  worked  and  hoped.  Volumes  could 
be  filled  with  stories  of  the  hardships  and  sorrows  of  those 
brave  people;  stories  of  mothers  who  died  from  overwork 
or  exposure  or  lack  of  care,  of  children  who  sickened  from 
want  of  proper  food,  of  homes  swept  away  by  prairie  fires, 
and  of  homesteads  mortgaged  and  lost. 

But  this  is  only  one  side.  Pioneer  life  was  not  all  dark. 
Most  of  the  people  were  strong  and  healthy,  and  the  out- 
door life  with  plenty  of  exercise  and  simple  food  kept  them 


124  A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 

SO.  Although  there  was  privation  and  hard  work  there 
was  also  much  of  pleasure.  Ask  any  old 
Jf^piSliTeTlife  settler  whether  the  people  had  good  times 
in  those  days,  and  you  will  hear  tales  of 
spelling  schools  and  of  singing  schools,  of  literary  socie- 
ties at  which  debating  was  an  important  feature,  and  of 
the  country  dance  with  its  old-time  music  on  the  fiddle. 
These  affairs  were  attended  by  young  and  old  from  miles 
around;  a  trip  of  from  ten  to  fifteen  or  even  twenty  miles 
was  not  unusual.  Buggies  were  scarce,  and  most  of  the 
settlers  went  on  horseback  or  in  farm  wagons  that  did  not 
always  have  spring  seats. 

Quilting  and  husking  bees,  house-warmings,  and  camp 
meetings  were  other  events  of  the  early  days.  Since  there 
were  no  telephones  and  since  it  was  often  days  from  one 
mail  to  another,  pioneer  families  counted  it  a  pleasure  to 
"visit  around"  and  exchange  the  news.  Those  were  the 
days  of  real  hospitality;  the  "latch-string  hung  out  at 
every  door,"  and  all  were  welcome  to  enter.  No  house 
was  too  small  nor  no  food  supply  too  scanty  for  the  enter- 
tainment of  friends  or  wayfarers.  Those  were  the  days, 
too,  when  the  children  often  waited  for  "second  table"  or 
stood  up  to  eat  because  there  were  not  enough  chairs  for 
all;  when  the  boys  wore  high-topped  boots,  the  girls  wore 
sunbonnets,  and  a  calico  dress  was  good  enough  for  almost 
any  occasion. 

In  the  earlier  years  the  buffalo  hunt  was  one  of  the 

pleasures  of  the  pioneers.     In  the  fall  parties  of  men  with 

-,  _  ,   ,     ,.        tneir  teams  and  hunting  outfits  would  set 
Buffalo  hunting  ,«.,,,«.,  ,  -, 

out  for  the  buffalo  range  to  secure  a  supply 

of  meat  for  the  winter.      They  were  usually  successful  in 

finding  not  only  buffaloes,  but  antelopes,  wild  turkeys, 

and  occasionally  elk  or  deer. 

Remarkable  stories  are  told  of  the  great  numbers  of 


THE  HALF  CENTURY  SINCE  THE  CIVH.  WAE       125 

buffaloes  still  roaming  our  western  prairies  forty  years  ago ; 

stories  of  herds  miles  in  width  moving 
onhrbuffakT       across  the  country.    With  the  inrushing 

tide  of  immigration  the  buffaloes  rapidly 
disappeared.  Within  little  more  than  a  dozen  years  after 
the  close  of  the  Civil  War  there  were  practically  none  left. 
This  was  not  because  they  were  used  as  food,  but  because 
they  were  killed  for  their  hides.  Large  numbers  were 
slaughtered  and  skinned  and  the  bodies  left  on  the  plains. 
The  hides  were  shipped  East  by  carloads,  where  they  were 
sold  to  make  robes. 


■PH 

m 

'SSi^S 

Mi 

MM 

Mi 

n 

■ 

^ 

^ 

1 

B^wT:fy 

^^^^ 

1 

Pile  of  Buffalo  Hides  Ready  for  Shipment. 
In  a  few  years  the  prairies  were  thickly  strewn  with 
bleaching  bones,  and  these,  too,  were  gathered  up  and 
shipped  East,  where  they  were  ground  into 
fertilizer  to  be  used  on  worn-out  farms. 
These  bones  brought  from  six  to  ten  dol- 
lars a  ton,  and  money  earned  in  this  way  served  to  tide 


Selling  buffalo 
bones 


126 


A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 


The  trappers 


many  a  homesteader  through  the  winter.  It  has  often 
been  regretted  that  the  Government  did  not  take  meas- 
ures to  restrict  the  kilhng  of  the  buffalo,  but  the  danger  of 
extermination  was  not  reahzed  until  too  late. 

A  great  deal  of  trapping  was  done,  especially  by  the 
younger  men.  Often  several  of  them  would  make  up  a 
party,  and  with  guns,  traps,  and  a  win- 
ter's supply  of  provisions  start  for  a  favor- 
ite trapping-ground,  where  they  would  make  a  camp 
along  some  stream.  Sometimes  the  camp  was  a  tent,  but 
more  often  it  was 
a  dugout  in  the 
bank  with  the 
front  part  made 
of  logs.  Along 
the  streams  they 
caught  chiefly 
the  beaver,  the 
otter,  the  rac- 
coon, and  the  ^°y«^^- 
wildcat,  and  en  the  prairies  the'  big  gray  wolf  and  the 
coyote.  The  busy  days  were  filled  with  the  work  of  vis- 
iting the  traps,  caring  for  the  pelts,  chasing  wild  gam^e, 
and  keeping  an  alert  watch  for  Indians.  When  spring 
came  and  they  turned  homeward  to  take  up  the  work 
on  the  farms  they  often  carried  with  them  several 
hundred  dollars'  worth  of  furs. 

The  population  of  Kansas  was  gradually  built  up  from 
many  sources,  but  until  1878  there  were  not  many  negroes 
in  the  State.  In  that  year  there  began  in 
1878-1880  ^'  some  of  the  southern  states  a  movement 
among  the  colored  people  to  migrate  to 
western  and  northern  states.  So  many  thousands  of  them 
left  the  Southland  that  the  m.ovement  came  to  be  called 


THE   HALF  CENTURY   SINCE  THE  CIVIL  WAR 

**The  Exodus."  It  is  not  strange  that  the  State  famed  for 
its  fight  for  freedom  should  attract  many  of  the  ex-slaves, 
or  the  **Exodusters/'  as  they  were  called.  During  the 
years  1878-'80  several  thousands  of  negroes  arrived  in 
Kansas.  A  few  had  teams  and  some  farming  implements, 
some  had  a  scanty  supply  of  household  goods,  but  many 
had  nothing  at  all  and  had  to  be  given  aid.  A  very  few  of 
them  homesteaded  land,  others  found  employment  as  farm 
hands,  and  the  rest  settled  in  different  towns  of  the  State. 

The  ten  years  following  the  grasshopper  invasion  of  1874 
were  all  good  years.  The  rains  fell  and  crops  flourished.  It 
was  a  period  of  remarkable  growth  and 
bJoirUnThl^  80*8  Prosperity.  During  these  years  the  rail- 
roads were  making  special  efforts  to  bring 
settlers  into  the  State,  and  Kansas  was  widely  advertised. 
Reports  of  the  opportunities  here  stimulated  immigration 
and  settlements  overspread  the  western  prairies.  Great 
confidence  was  felt  in  the  future  of  the  State,  and  people  in 
the  East  eagerly  invested  in  western  land  and  property. 
Money  was  easy  to  borrow,  and  the  Kansas  people  bor- 
rowed liberally  and  began  speculating  in  real  estate. 
Kansas  was  soon  "on  the  boom."  Property  was  bought, 
not  to  use,  but  to  sell  again  at  a  higher  price.  Cities  and 
towns  laid  out  additions  which  were  divided  into  lots  and 
sold  for  large  sums.  Expensive  improvements  were  made, 
and  public  and  business  buildings  were  constructed  that 
were  far  larger  and  more  costly  than  the  needs  of  the  time 
demanded.  Railway  and  street-car  lines  were  built  where 
there  was  not  business  enough  to  support  them.  Hundreds 
of  new  towns  were  mapped  out  and  the  lots  sold.  Many  of 
these  towns  never  existed  except  on  paper,  and  most  of  the 
others  were  later  turned  into  pastures  or  cornfields. 

Since  the  new  settlers  were  not  familiar  with  soil  and 
climate  conditions  in  Kansas  many  of  them  selected  land 


iiiiiPiiiiiiifiiiiiiifiiii!iiiiiiri!iiifiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiniiinii!iiiiiiiin^ 


State  Governors,  1877-1893 


THE   HALF  CENTURY  SINCE  THE  CIVIL  WAR       129 

that  was  not  adapted  to  agriculture,  therefore  much  of  the 
farming?  was  not  profitable.    In  1887  came 

the  boom^lTss?  ^^®  ^^  ^^^  "^^^  severe  drouths  that  was 
ever  known  in  the  country.  The  people 
lost  confidence  in  Kansas  and  the  boom  collapsed.  Eastern 
people  wanted  their  money  back,  but  there  was  nothing 
with  which  to  pay  them.  Money  could  not  be  borrowed 
and  mortgages  were  foreclosed.  People  who  had  bought 
property  at  high  prices,  expecting  to  sell  at  a  profit,  found 
themselves  unable  to  sell  at  any  price.  Many  who  had 
counted  themselves  wealthy  found  their  property  almost 
valueless.  Banks  and  business  houses  failed  and  hundreds 
of  people  were  ruined.  Thousands  left  Kansas,  some  of 
the  western  counties  being  almost  abandoned.  The 
year  1887  was  followed,  however,  by  several  good  crop 
seasons.  A  great  deal  of  attention  was  given  to  the  study 
of  farm  conditions  and  Kansas  began  to  make  progress 
again. 

In  1889  Kansas  lost  about  50,000  of  her  population. 
This  came  about  through  the  opening  of  Oklahoma  to 
settlement.  The  President  issued  a  proc- 
Oklahomi"^  ^^  lamation  setting  high  noon  of  April  22  as 
the  time  at  which  the  settlers  could  enter 
the  new  country  to  take  claims.  The  opening  of  Okla- 
homa had  been  anxiously  awaited  for  years,  and,  as  the 
appointed  time  drew  near,  people  from  all  parts  of  the 
United  States  began  to  assemble  along  the  southern  line 
of  Kansas.  Arkansas  City  was  the  chief  gathering  place, 
for  it  was  at  this  point  that  the  one  line  of  railroad  entered 
Oklahoma.  When  at  noon,  April  22,  the  cavalrymen  who 
patroled  the  borders  fired  their  carbines  as  a  signal  that 
the  settlers  could  move  across  the  line,  a  great  shout  went 
up,  and  the  race  for  claims  began.  Hundreds  crowded  the 
trains,  thousands  rode  on  fleet  horses,  many  rode  in  buggies 


130  A  HISTORY  OF  KANSAS 

and  backboards,  others  in  heavy  farm  wagons,  and  some 
even  made  the  race  on  foot.  In  the  morning  Oklahoma 
was  an  uninhabited  prairie,  at  midday  it  was  a  surging 
mass  of  earnest,  excited  humanity,  in  the  evening  it  was  a 
land  of  many  people.  Within  a  few  days  the  breaking 
plow  was  turning  the  sod  on  many  homesteads,  while  mer- 
chants, bankers,  and  professional  men  were  carrying  on 
their  business  in  tents  or  in  rough  board  shanties.  The  rush 
of  settlement  to  Kansas  was  remarkable,  but  the  settle- 
ment of  Oklahoma  is  the  climax  in  the  story  of  American 
pioneering.  Although  Kansas  furnished  such  a  large  num- 
ber of  the  Oklahoma  settlers,  immigration  to  our  State 
from  the  East  soon  made  up  the  loss. 

In  1893  a  financial  panic  extended  over  the  whole 
country,  accompanied  in  Kansas  by  a  partial  failure  of 
crops.  Those  were  dark  days  in  Kansas, 
oM893"*^  for  many  of  the  people  were  still  burdened 

with  heavy  mortgages.  But  this  period 
should  be  remembered  as  our  last  ''hard  times."  Within 
two  or  three  years  conditions  had  greatly  improved.  The 
twenty  years  following  that  time  brought  almost  uninter- 
rupted prosperity. 

In  1898  the  long  period  of  peace  that  the  country  had 
enjoyed  since  the  Civil  War  was  broken  by  the  Spanish- 
Kansas  in  the  American  War.  The  call  for  soldiers  was 
Spanish- Ameri-  eagerly  responded  to  in  Kansas,  and  four 
can  War  regiments  were  raised.     Our  State  had 

furnished  seventeen  regiments  during  the  Civil  War  and 
two  for  fighting  the  Indians,  therefore  the  four  for  the 
Spanish- American  War  were  numbered  the  Twentieth,  the 
Twenty-first,  the  Twenty-second,  and  the  Twenty-third. 
The  Twenty-third  was  composed  of  colored  soldiers.  The 
only  one  of  these  regiments  called  upon  to  do  any  fighting 
was  the  Twentieth,  which  was  ordered  to  the  Philippines. 


THE   HALF  CENTURY  SINCE  THE  CIVIL  WAR       131 

There,  under  a  Kansan,  Colonel  Fred  Funston,  the  men 
of  this  regiment  took  part  in  the  campaigns  that  followed, 
and  by  their  bravery  and  efficiency  brought  much  credit 
to  themselves  and  to  their  State.  The  Twenty-third  was 
sent  to  Cuba.  The  other  regiments  were  trained  and  kept 
in  readiness,  but  the  early  end  of  the  war  prevented  their 
active  service. 

The  year  1903  is  an  interesting  one,  for  it  marked  the 
completion  of  our  State  Capitol.  Shortly  after  the  ad- 
mission of  Kansas  to  the  Union  the  people 
Capitol  selected  Topeka  as  the  seat  of  govern- 

ment. As  soon  as  the  Civil  War  was 
over  and  they  had  time  to  think  about  public  im- 
provements they  began  to  lay  plans  for  building  a  capitol. 
Every  state  has  a  capitol,  or  statehouse  as  it  is  often  called, 
in  which  there  are  offices  for  the  Governor  and  other  state 
officers  as  well  as  large  rooms  for  the  meetings  of  the 
Legislature.  It  is  for  the  state  what  a  courthouse  is  for 
a  county.  It  should,  of  course,  be  a  fine  building,  of  which 
the  people  can  be  proud.  But  back  in  the  '60's  Kansas 
people  were  few  in  number  and  had  little  money.  They 
could  not  afford  to  build  a  capitol  that  would  be  large  and 
handsome  enough  for  the  future,  nor  did  they  wish  to  con- 
struct a  small,  cheap  building  that  would  have  to  be  set 
aside  later.  Instead  they  planned  a  fine  structure  to  be 
built  a  little  at  a  time  as  they  could  afford  it. 

In  1866  the  Legislature  provided  for  the  erection  of  what 
is  now  the  east  wing  of  our  statehouse.  As  the  State  grew 
in  wealth  and  population,  more  money  was  appropriated 
from  time  to  time  for  the  construction  of  other  wings, 
the  great  central  portion,  and  lastly  the  high  dome  that 
reaches  nearly  three  hundred  feet  into  the  air.  The  build- 
ing was  completed  in  1903,  having  been  thirty-seven  years 
in  the  making.     It  grew  as  the  State  grew,  costing  alto- 


THE  HALF  CENTURY  SINCE  THE  CIVHi  WAR 


133 


BBSi^f^ki. 

^ 

r--  -■■■ 

^  '"  ^ 

^^^^BB^  '  •»  *  * ».  ^ » 

****! 

b- 

'^"^  ^-^^J 

wtm 

..J^flfl 

B^fcl^ 

M 

^:^ 

'•-»?»?*  ^ 

1 

4BR 

mm-            .   , 

r 

"^ 

■■'•ir**^      1 

The  floods 


Senate  Chamber  in  the  State  Capitol. 

gether  between  three  and  four  millions  of  dollars.  It  is 
fitting  that  the  great  State  of  Kansas  should  now  have 
one  of  the  finest  capitols  in  the  United  States. 

The  people  of  Kansas  had  withstood  a  number  of 
drouths,  but  beginning  in  1903  they  were,  for  the  first 
time,  visited  by  a  series  of  floods.  The 
first  one  was  probably  the  most  destruc- 
tive. Most  of  the  water  came  down  the  Kansas  River 
from  the  tributaries  draining  central  and  western  Kansas, 
where  there  had  been  heavy  rainfall.  Farms  and  towns 
along  these  streams  were  flooded,  property  was  swept 
away,  and  a  number  of  lives  were  lost.  Topeka,  Law- 
rence, and  Kansas  City,  where  portions  of  the  cities  were 
inundated  for  days,  suffered  heavy  losses.    The  following 


r 

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$ 

^  .^j^rub^s 

f£ 

i 

4 

i 

i 

1 

1 

t9HlliiHHHi 

1 

I 


THE  HALF  CENTURY  SINCE  THE  CIVIL  WAR       135 

year  nearly  every  stream  in  the  State  poured  a  flood  of 
water  down  its  valley,  and  many  people  had  to  flee  to  the 
hills  for  safety.  In  1908,  for  the  third  time  in  five  years, 
Kansas  was  again  visited  by  high  water.  The  loss  oc- 
casioned by  these  floods  amounted  to  many  millions  of 
dollars,  but  help  poured  in  to  the  sufferers  from  many 
sources  and  they  straightway  began  the  work  of  repairing 
and  rebuilding.  In  a  short  time  all  traces  of  the  calamity 
had  disappeared. 

Stories  of  floods  in  Kansas  have  been  handed  down 
from  far-off  Indian  days,  but  the  earliest  flood  of  which 
there  is  any  account  was  in  1844.  The  Indians  told  the 
white  men  about  it  and  advised  against  building  close  to 
the  rivers,  but  no  attention  was  paid  to  the  warning.  Since 
the  recent  floods,  however,  a  number  of  people  have  moved 
back  from  the  streams.  A  few  of  the  cities,  including 
Topeka,  Lawrence,  and  Kansas  City,  have  built  dikes, 
bridges  have  been  lengthened  to  give  streams  more  room, 
and  several  railroad  grades  have  been  raised  above  the 
danger  line. 

While  the  floods  caused  much  loss  and  suffering,  the 
State's  resources  had  become  so  great  that  the  condition 
^  of  general  prosperity  was  not  seriously 

affected  I  Each  year  has  added  to  the 
prosperity  and  progress  of  the  State  until  now,  at  the  close 
of  the  half  century  since  the  Civil  War,  Kansas  is  one  of 
the  great  states  of  the  Union.  We  have  only  to  look  about 
us  to  see  how  marvelously  conditions  have  changed  since 
pioneer  days.  Great  fields  and  orchards  are  spread  over 
what  was  once  the  Indians'  hunting  ground,  and  cattle 
have  taken  the  place  of  the  roving  herds  of  buffaloes. 
Steam  plows  now  turn  the  soil  where  once  there  was 
only  buffalo  grass,  thriving  towns  and  cities  stand  where 


imTERRSTUBBS 


State  Governors,  1893-1914 


THE   HALF  CENTURY  SINCE  THE  ClVUi  WAR       137 

once  the  tepee  stood,  and  shining  rails  of  steel  mark  the 
paths  of  Indian  ponies  and  emigrant  trains. 

All  these  things  have  been  done  within  a  single  genera- 
tion. Thousands  of  the  men  and  women  who  came  into 
Kansas  in  their  wagons  and  drove  across  the  unfenced 
plains  are  still  among  us,  but  now  when  they  journey  over 
the  same  country  they  go  in  swiftly  moving  trains  or  auto- 
mobiles. Where  once  they  saw  only  the  prairie  and  a  few 
settlers'  cabins  they  now  see  roads  and  bridges,  farms  and 
ranches,  stores,  banks,  mills,  mines,  and  factories.  They 
see  what  they  have  helped  to  build,  a  great  state,  and  they 
may  well  be  proud  of  it.  By  their  unconquerable  faith  and 
courage  and  their  unremitting  toil  they  have  made  Kansas 
what  it  is  to-day. 

As  the  pioneers  look  at  their  State  they  see  not  only  the 
acres  that  have  been  brought  under  cultivation,  the  wealth 
that  has  been  produced,  but  they  see  a 
of^Kanaas"*  state  government  that  is  one  of  the  most 
advanced  in  the  Union.  Many  measures 
have  been  passed  to  promote  the  welfare  of  the  people. 
Among  the  important  ones  are:  the  child-labor  law,  the 
truancy  law,  the  anti-cigarette  law,  the  law  providing  for 
juvenile  courts,  laws  pertaining  to  public  health,  the 
fire-escape  law,  the  '*Blue  Sky''  law,  the  primary-election 
law,  and  the  law  governing  public  utilities.  These  are 
only  a  few,  but  among  the  hundreds  of  measures  that  have 
been  passed,  affecting  the  character  of  our  government, 
none  stand  out  more  prominently  than  the  two  amend- 
ments to  our  constitution  providing  for  prohibition  and 
for  woman  suffrage. 

Temperance  was  a  live  topic  in  Kansas  from  the  begin- 
ing;  even  in  Territorial  days  laws  were  passed  that  tended 
to  regulate,  in  some  degree,  the  liquor  traffic.  During 
the  first  eighteen  years  of  statehood  there  was  a  constant 


138  A   HISTORY   OF   KANSAS 

increase  in  sentiment  favorable  to  prohibition,  and,  in 
1880,  during  the  administration  of  Gov- 
i^'K^nias"  ^^^0^  John  P.  St.  John,  the  people  voted 

to  adopt  the  following  amendment  to  the 
Constitution:  "The  manufacture  and  sale  of  intoxicating 
liquors  shall  be  forever  prohibited  in  this  State,  except  for 
medical,  scientific,  and  mechanical  purposes."  The  law 
has  been  strengthened  from  time  to  time,  and  more  atten- 
tion has  been  given  to  its  enforcement,  until  to-day  Kansas 
is  one  of  the  strictest  of  prohibition  states,  and  the  popular 
sentiment  against  the  use  of  liquor  is  stronger  here,  per- 
haps, than  anywhere  else  in  the  United  States.  For  many 
years  Kansas  stood  almost  alone  as  a  prohibition  state, 
but  in  recent  years  the  number  of  prohibition  states  has 
been  increasing  rapidly  and  the  movement  gives  promise 
of  becoming  nation  wide.  It  is  a  matter  of  pride  in  Kansas 
that  ours  was  a  pioneer  state  in  this  great  movement. 

Kansas  has  been  one  of  the  most  liberal  of  the  states  in 
its  laws  concerning  the  rights  of  women,  but  it  is  only 

„-  _         recently  that  Kansas  women  have  had  full 

Woman  suflfrage  ^    •  v.±.      r     -•o/?i 

political  rights.  In  1861  women  were  given 

the  right  to  vote  in  district  school  elections,  and  in  1887 
in  city  elections.  The  question  of  complete  woman  suf- 
frage was  voted  upon  and  defeated  in  1867,  and  again  in 
1894,  but  in  1912  it  carried  by  a  large  majority.  Only  six 
states,  Colorado,  Idaho,  Utah,  Wyoming,  Washington,  and 
California,  preceded  Kansas  in  granting  to  women  the 
right  of  suffrage. 

In  the  present  chapter  we  have  touched  only  in  a  general 
way  upon  the  State's  progress,  but  growth  has  been  in 
many  directions  and  each  activity  has  a  history  of  its  own. 
In  order  that  we  may  better  understand  the  advancement 
that  has  been  made  we  will  study  more  fully  three  of  the 


THE   HALF  CENTURY  SINCE  THE  CIVIL  WAR       139 

most  important  phases  of  the  Staters  progress  and  devel- 
opment— transportation,  industry  and  education. 

SUMMARY 

The  fifty  years  since  the  Civil  War  have  been  eventful 
ones.  The  Indian  troubles  on  the  frontier  lasted  from  1864 
until  1869.  Much  property  and  more  than  1000  lives  were 
lost.  National  troops  and  a  regiment  of  Kansas  soldiers 
were  required  to  quell  the  trouble.  Governor  Crawford 
resigned  his  position  and  took  command  of  the  Kansas 
troops.  In  1878-'80  thousands  of  negroes  arrived  in 
Kansas.  This  movement  from  the  South  was  called  the 
"  Exodus."  The  grasshopper  invasion  in  1874  was  followed 
by  ten  vears  of  prosperity.  Then  came  the  boom,  which 
was  ended  by  the  drouth  in  1887.  Eastern  money-lenders 
held  thousands  of  Kansas  mortgages,  and  though  several 
good  crop  years  followed,  the  State  had  not  yet  recovered 
when  the  panic  in  1893  brought  renewed  trouble.  Good 
crops  followed,  and  Kansas  soon  entered  upon  a  period  of 
prosperity  which  has  continued  to  the  present  time. 
Kansas  furnished  four  regiments  for  the  Spanish-American 
War  in  1898.  The  State  Capitol  which  was  begun  in  1866 
was  completed  in  1903.  The  years  1903,  1904,  and  1908 
were  the  flood  years.  Among  the  many  important  gov- 
ernmental measures  are  the  prohibition  and  woman 
suffrage  amendments.  During  the  half  century  since  the 
Civil  War  Kansas  has  become  a  great  and  prosperous 
state. 

REFERENCES 

Andreas,  History  of  Kansas,  Selected  Topics. 
Blackmar,  Kansas,  Selected  Topics. 
Parrish,  The  Great  Plains. 
Wright,  Dodge  City,  the  Cowboy  Capital. 
Crawford,  Kansas  in  the  Sixties. 
Spring,  Kansas,  chap.  iv. 

Prentis,  History  of  Kansas,  pp.  168,  172-173,  184,  194,  204,  211, 
218-222. 

Historical  Collections,  Selected  Topics. 
McCarter,  Price  of  the  Prairie.     (A  novel.) 


140  A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 

QUESTIONS 

1.  What  were  the  conditions  in  Kansas  at  the  close  of  the 
Civil  War? 

2.  Give  an  account  of  the  Indian  troubles  in  Kansas. 

3.  How  did  the  Homestead  Law  affect  immigration? 

4.  Give  an  account  of  the  grasshopper  invasion  and  its  effect 
on  Kansas. 

5.  What  progress  was  made  during  the  next  ten  years? 

6.  What  effect  did  the  railroads  have  on  immigration? 

7.  When  was  the  "boom"?  Describe  conditions  during  the 
boom.    What  were  some  of  its  causes?    What  ended  it? 

8.  What  was  the  effect  of  this  boom  on  Kansas?  What  have  you 
learned  from  talking  with  persons  who  lived  here  in  the  "boom 
days"? 

9.  Tell  something  of  the  "hard  times"  of  the  early  '90's. 

10.  What  part  did  Kansas  take  in  the  Spanish-American  War? 

11.  Give  an  account  of  the  building  of  the  State  Capitol. 

12.  Give  an  account  of  the  floods  in  Kansas. 

13.  Give  an  account  of  the  opening  of  Oklahoma.  How  did  it 
affect  Kansas? 

14.  Compare  Kansas  to-day  with  Kansas  as  it  was  fifty  years 
ago. 

15.  vVhat  is  the  prohibition  amendment?  The  woman  suffrage 
amendment? 


CHAPTER  XV 

THE  INDUSTRIES  OF  KANSAS 

Agriculture,  the  leading  industry  of  our  State,  was  for 
many  years  almost  the  only  occupation  of  our  people. 
The  Indians  were  the  first  farmers  in 
Kan^f^mers  Kansas.  The  Comanches,  in  the  western 
part  of  the  State,  were  roving  hunters,  but 
the  eastern  Indians  had  permanent  homes  and  tilled  the 
soil.  They  were  both  hunters  and  farmers.  A  government 
agent  in  describing  their  mode  of  living  says:  *'They  raise 
annually  small  crops  of  com,  beans,  and  pumpkins.  These 
they  cultivate  entirely  with  the  hoe,  in  the  simplest  man- 
ner. Their  crops  are  usually  planted  in  April,  and  receive 
one  dressing  before  they  leave  their  villages  for  the  simi- 
mer  hunt  in  May." 

When  Kansas  was  made  an  Indian  country  the  National 
Government  agreed  in  the  treaties  to  supply  the  Indians 
Agriculture  ^^^^  cattle,  hogs,  and  farming  implements, 

taught  to  the  and  to  employ  persons  to  teach  them  agri- 
Indians  culture.     In  accordance  with  this  agree- 

ment several  government  farms  were  established  and  both 
the  government  farmers  and  the  missionaries  taught  agri- 
culture to  the  Indians.  By  the  time  Kansas  was  organized 
as  a  Territory,  in  1854,  there  were  a  number  of  farms  in 
the  different  reservations  and  at  the  missions,  and  the 
produce  was  such  as  to  show  that  the  soil  of  Kansas  is 
remarkably  fertile. 

Most  of  the  early  settlers  of  Kansas  were  farmers,  but 
during  Territorial  days  the  political  and  governmental 

(141) 


142 


A  HISTORY  OF  KANSAS 


troubles  made  much  progress  in  farming  impossible.     The 
Agriculture  terrible  season  of  1860  made  a  dreary  clos- 


during 
Territorial  days 


ing  for  this  period  and  confirmed  in  the 
minds  of  many  eastern  people  the  old 
idea  that  Kansas  was  fit  only  for  Indians,  buffaloes,  and 
prairie  dogs. 

The  year  following  the  drouth  brought  a  good  crop, 
but  it  also  brought  the  beginning  of  the  Civil  War  which 
Agriculture  absorbed  the  energies  of  the  settlers  for 

during  four  years  more.    It  was  not  until  the  close 

the  Civil  War        ^^  ^^^  ^^^^  .^  ^gg^^  ^-^^^  agriculture  can  be 

said  to  have  had  a  real  beginning  in  Kansas.    But,  in  spite 

of  the  poverty  and  hardships  of 
the  war  years,  two  things  of 
especial  significance  were  done 
that  showed  the  interest  of  the 
pioneers  in  agriculture.  During 
this  period  the  Agricultural  Col- 
lege at  Manhattan  was  estab- 
lished, and  the  State  Agricul- 
tural Society  was  formed.  The 
object  of  the  Society  was  ''to 
promote  the  improvement  of 
agriculture  and  its  kindred  arts 
throughout  the  State  of  Kan- 
sas." Under  its  management  a 
state  fair  was  held  at  Leaven- 
worth in  1863,  and  in  that  year 
the  Legislature  appropriated 
$1000  for  the  benefit  of  the  So- 
ciety. These  events  are  worthy 
of  note,  because  they  showed 
the  enterprise  of  the  people 
Hand  Planter.  when  their  resources  were  small. 


THE  INDUSTRIES  OF  KANSAS 


143 


The  farming  implements  of  the  pioneers  were  few  and 

simple.    Much  of  the  machinery  of  to-day  had  not  then 

been  invented.     Because  cf  the  cost  cf 

fmpleme^^^       transportation,  and   the   lack   cf   money 

among  the  settlers,  even  the  machinery 

of  that  day  was  scarce  in  Kansas.     The  all-inrportant 

implement  was  the 
plow.  The  pio- 
neer's first  crop  was 
usually  "sod  com." 
The  field  was  pre- 
pared with  a  break- 
ing plow,  which 
threw  up  the  sod  in 
parallel  strips  from 
two  to  five  inches  in 
thickness.  Then 
the  farm.er,  with  an 
ax  or  a  spade  and  a 
bag  of  seed  com, 
walked  back  and 
forth  across  the 
field,  prying  apart 
or  gashing  the  sod 
at  regular  intervals 
and  dropping  into 
each  opening  three 
cr  four  grains  cf 
com.  Then  he 
waited  for  the  crop. 
Once  the  land 
was  broken,  it  was, 
in  after  years,  pre- 


The  "Old  Mill'*  at  Lawrence,  erected  in 
1863.  This  was  a  gristmill,  an  octagon 
shaped,  four-story  structure,  having  a 
genuine  Holland  windmill  for  motive 
power.  Additional  buildings  were 
erected  for  the  manufacture  of  wagons 
and  farming  implements.  Thenriillwas 
abandoned  many  years  ago,  and  in  1905 
it  burned. 


144 


A   HISTORY   OF   KANSAS 


pared  for  the  seed  with  the  stirring  plow  and  the  harrow, 
and  planting  was  done  with  a  hand  planter.  Later  the 
corn  planter  drawn  by  a  team  came  into  use.  This  ma- 
chine required  a  driver,  and  another  person  to  work  the 
lever  that  dropped  the  corn.  Then  came  the  planter  with 
the  check-rower  which,  when  attached  to  the  planter,  made 
only  a  driver  necessary.  During  the  last  few  years  the 
lister  has  come  into  very  general  use. 

The  early  settlers  cultivated  their  com  with  a  single- 
shovel  cultivator  drawn  by  one  horse.    With  this  culti- 


Corn  Binder. 

Tator  it  was  necessary  to  make  a  trip  along  each  side  of 
every  row  of  com.  The  double-shovel  cultivator  soon 
came  into  use,  but  it,  also,  was  drawn  by  one  horse  and 
cultivated  but  one  side  of  the  row  at  a  time.    This  labor 


THE  INDUSTRIES  OF   KANSAS  145 

was  greatly  reduced  by  the  invention  of  the  cultivator 
drawn  by  a  team  and  having  shovels  for  both  sides  of  the 
com  row.  Now  cultivators  may  be  had  that  till  two  rows 
at  a  time.  Formerly  the  farmer  cut  all  of  his  com  by  hand 
with  a  knife.    Now  he  uses  the  riding  corn  binder. 

Great  as  has  been  the  improvement  in  corn  machinery, 
even  greater  changes  have  come  about  in  the  machinery 


Heading  Wheat. 

used  for  the  wheat  crop.  The  earliest  harvesting  imple- 
ment used  in  Kansas  was  the  cradle,  a  scythe  with  long 
fingers  parallel  with  the  blade  to  catch  the  grain  as  it  was 
cut.  The  cradler  laid  the  grain  in  rows.  A  second  man 
followed  with  a  rake  and  gathered  the  wheat  into  small 
piles  which  he  tied  into  bundles,  using  som.e  of  the  straw 
for  bands.  The  next  machine  was  the  reaper,  which  car- 
ried two  men,  one  to  drive  the  team  2nd  one  to  push  off 
the  wheat  whenever  enough  had  been  cut  to  make  a  bundle. 
The  reaper  required  four  or  five  binders  to  follow  it.  It 
was  soon  improved  by  being  made  self -dumping  and  later 
self-binding.  Inventions  and  improvements  have  followed 
in  rapid  succession,  and  to-day  the  planting  and  harvesting 
of  wheat  can  be  done  with  remarkable  speed  and  efficiency. 
The  many  wonderful  inventions  in  farm  machinery  have 


146 


A   HISTORY  OF  KANSAS 


made  possible  in  the  farming  of  to-day  a  great  saving  of  time 
and  labor  as  compared  with  the  farming  of  forty  years  ago. 
There  are  few  lines  in  which  greater  progress  has  been  made. 
For  several  years  after  the  Civil  War  the  population  of 
Kansas  increased  more  rapidly  than  did  the  crops,  and  the 
Agriculture  country  was  kept  poor.    The  destruction 

between  1800       of   crops   by   the    grasshoppers   in   1874 
and  1880  retarded  immigration  and  left  the  people 

discouraged.    Several  good  crop  years  followed,  however, 
and  confidence  in  the  agricultural  future  of  Kansas  soon 


Steam  Plow. 

returned.  By  1880  nearly  9,000,000  acres  of  land  were  in 
cultivation,  a  third  of  which  was  planted  to  corn  and  a 
fourth  to  wheat.  The  next  largest  acreage  was  in  oats.  A 
number  of  other  crops  were  reported,  including  rye,  barley, 
buckwheat,  sorghum,  cotton,  hemp,  tobacco,  broom  corn, 
millet,  clover,  and  blue  grass.  At  that  time  not  a  great  deal 
was  known  of  the  soil  or  climate  of  the  State,  and  we  find 


THE  INDUSTRIES  OF  KANSAS  147 


Alfalfa. 

in  this  list  of  crops  several  that  have  since  been  found  un- 
profitable and  are  no  longer  raised  in  any  considerable 
quantities. 

The  year  1880  found  the  people  of  Kansas  full  of  hope 
and  courage,  and  from  that  time  until  the  drouth  of  1887 
agriculture  developed  rapidly.  It  was  a 
iSoTi^isI?''""  period  of  new  ideas  and  new  methods. 
Millions  of  additional  acres  were  brought 
into  cultivation.  The  principal  crops,  com,  wheat,  and 
oats,  were  each  greatly  increased.  Fields  of  timothy, 
clover,  orchard  grass,  and  blue  grass  were  planted  in  the 
central  counties,  and  even  farther  west.  Soil  that  a  few 
years  before  had  been  considered  unfit  for  farming  was  now 
producing  large  crops.  The  State  was  being  rapidly 
settled,  many  miles  of  railroad  were  in  operation,  and  the 
excellent  crops  did  much  to  encourage  the  ''boom''  of  1885 
to  1887. 

The  period  of  good  crops  following  the  dry  season  of 
1887  lasted  for  five  years,  and  it  was  a  time  of  great  ac- 
tivity along  many  lines  of  agricultural  ad- 
^sTt'Io^'Ios''™  vancement.  By  1890  nearly  16,000,000 
acres  had  been  brought  under  cultivation. 
This  area  was  almost  double  the  area  under  cultivation 
ten  years  earlier. 

Before  1890  most  of  the  farniing  was  done  in  the  eastern 
and  central  parts  of  the  State,  the  western  part  being  con- 


148 


A  HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 


Irrigation  from  the  underflow.  Upper,  water  pumi)ed  into 
the  reservoir  by  windmills.  Lower,  water  pumped  into  the 
reservoir  by  an  engine. 


Western  Kansas 


sidered  poorly  adapted  to  agricultural  purposes.  During 
the  next  few  years,  however,  it  was  shown 
that  wheat  can  be  successfully  raised  clear 
to  the  Colorado  line.  The  sorghum  crops  also  proved  to 
be  well  adapted  to  this  section.  The  soil  of  western  Kan- 
sas was  found  to  be  wonderfully  fertile,  needing  only 


THE  INDUSTRIES  OF   KANSAS  149 

moisture  to  make  it  produce  abundantly.  A  more  thor- 
ough understanding  of  soil  and  climate  has  brought  better 
methods  of  tillage,  and  this,  together  with  a  careful  selec- 
tion of  crops,  is  making  the  yield  much  larger  and  more 
certain. 

The  possibilities  of  irrigation  for  this  section  of  the 
country  have  long  been  given  much  consideration.    For 

several  years  water  from  the  Arkansas 
weslein  Kansas    ^^^ver  was  successfully  used.     Colorado, 

however,  in  developing  irrigation,  used  so 
much  of  the  water  from  the  upper  Arkansas  that  there  was 
not  a  sufficient  amount  left  for  our  State.  Investigation 
resulted  in  the  discovery  of  an  underground  water  supply. 
This  water,  which  is  called  the  underflow,  moves  east- 
ward from  the  Rocky  Mountains  through  strata  of  gravel 
and  sand.  It  offers  to  a  large  part  of  western  Kansas  a 
practically  inexhaustible  supply  of  water  for  irrigation. 
Wells  are  bored  into  this  underflow  and  the  water  is 
pumped  for  irrigating  purposes.  Only  a  small  part  of 
western  Kansas  is  under  irrigation  as  yet^  but  experiments 
for  the  purpose  of  finding  the  best  methods  of  utilizing 
the  underflow  are  being  carried  on  by  individuals,  by 
experiment  stations,  and  by  the  State.  Irrigation  by 
pumping  is  bringing  about  a  remarkable  agricultural 
advancement  in  western  Kansas. 

About  1890  several  new  crops  came  into  prominence  in 
Kansas,  the  most  important  of  which  was  alfalfa.  Alfalfa 
... .-  is  now  grown  in  every  county  of  Kansas 

and  has  become  one  of  our  foremost  crops. 
Because  of  its  long,  penetrating  roots  it  can  be  grown  suc- 
cessfully without  irrigation  even  in  most  of  the  drier  parts 
of  Kansas.  As  its  many  points  of  excellence  become  bet- 
ter known  its  acreage  is  constantly  increasing.  Kansas 
produces  more  alfalfa  than  any  other  state  in  the  Union. 


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THE   INDUSTRIES  OF   KANSAS 


151 


Another  of  the  new  crops  was  Kafir  corn,  which  has  also 
proved  very  valuable.  This  plant  is  a  variety  of  sorghum. 
Other  varieties  had  been  raised  in  Kansas 
The«)rg  um  ^^^  many  years,  especially  the  sweet  sor- 
ghum that  could  be  used  for  making  sugar 
and  molasses.  Broom  corn  is  another  sorghum  crop  that 
has  been  grown  in  Kansas  for  a  long  while  and  is  raised 
in  large  quantities  in  the  southwestern  part  of  the  State. 
In  more  recent  years  two  more  sorghums,  milo  and  feterita, 
give  promise  of  becoming  valuable  forage  crops. 

During  the  early  '80's  considerable  sugar  had  been  made 
from  sorghum  cane,  but  in  1889  it  was,  for  the  first  time, 
made  from  beets.  For  a  number  of  years 
experiments  were  made  with  sugar  beets 
in  different  parts  of  western  Kansas.  To  encourage  sugar- 
beet  raising  a  bounty  was  offered  by  the  State  and  a  good 


Sugar  beets 


The  Beet  Sugar  Factory  at  Garden  City. 

many  tons  were  raised  and  shipped  to  sugar  factories  in 
Colorado  and  Nebraska.  In  1906  a  large  factory  was  com- 
pleted at  Garden  City  and  the  raising  of  sugar  beets  has 
become  an  important  industry  in  that  part  of  Kansas. 


THE  INDUSTRIES  OF   KANSAS  153 

Efforts  are  now  being  made  to  introduce  this  crop  into 
other  parts  of  the  State. 

Progress  was  checked  in  1893  by  the  financial  panic 
that  extended  throughout  the  country.    Values  dropped, 

and  prices  were  low  on  everything  the 
SllotTngikar'"  farmers  had  to  sell.     In  addition  to  the 

panic,  Kansas  suffered  a  crop  failure  in 
most  parts  of  the  State.  That  was  a  discouraging  period, 
but  within  a  few  years  Kansas  had  recovered.    From  that 


r-- 

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1 

A  Kansas  Wheat  Field. 

time  until  the  present  there  has  been  a  steady  rise  in  all 
values.  Owing  largely  to  the  fact  that  there  is  no  longer 
any  free  land  to  be  taken  as  homesteads,  land  prices  have 
steadily  risen.  The  price  of  farm  products  has  also  greatly 
increased.  In  1893  com  was  worth  but  ten  to  fifteen  cents 
a  bushel  and  wheat  from  thirty  to  forty  cents.  A  com- 
parison of  these  with  present  prices  serves  to  show  how 
great  has  been  the  change. 

Kansas  is  now  one  of  the  leading  agricultural  states  of 
the  Union.    It  produces  a  greater  variety  of  crops  than 


THE  INDUSTRIES   OF   KANSAS 


155 


Kansas  Corn. 


does  almost  any  other  state,  but  the  principal  ones  are 
now,  as  they  have  been  from  the  earliest 
Kansas  wheat  days,  com  and  wheat.  In  recent  years 
alfalfa  has  come  to  be  a  close  third .  Wheat 
is  our  most  noted  crop.  Kansas  is  unsurpassed  in  the  pro- 
duction of  this  grain.  Wheat  is  grown  in  every  county  in 
the  State,  but  by  far  the  greatest  quantity  comes  from  the 
''wheat  belt"  which  extends  across  the  middle  of  the  State, 
from  north  to  south.  Most  of  the  Kansas  wheat  is  of  the 
winter  varieties  commonly  called  ''Turkey  wheats,"  first 
brought  here  from  southern  Russia  by  the  Mennonites 
in  1873.  Ours  is  the  only  state  which  grows  these  wheats 
in  large  quantities. 

Corn  was  raised  here  by  the  Indians,  and  from  the  time 
of  the  settlement  of  the  Territory  com  has  been  the  lead- 


156 


A   HISTORY  OF  KANSAS 


The  corn  crop 


ing  crop  and  the  greatest  source  of  Kansas  wealth.  It  is 
raised  in  all  parts  of  the  State,  but  much 
the  largest  portion  is  produced  in  the  east- 
ern half.  It  is  on  this  crop  that  the  great  live-stock  in- 
dustries of  Kansas  most  depend. 

The  live-stock  industry  is  one  of  the  important  interests 
of  the  State.  The  grain  and  forage  crops,  the  large  areas 
of  good  pasture,  the  plentiful  supply  of 
water,  and  the  nearness  to  market,  all 
combine  to  make  Kansas  an  excellent  live- 
stock region.  The  raising  and  fattening  of  cattle  and  hogs 
constitute  the  chief  features  of  this  industry,  although 


The  live-stock 
industry 


Early  Day  Stock  Farm. 

there  are  a  number  of  others,  prominent  among  which  is 
dairying. 

The  early  farmers  had  their  herds  and  flocks  but  paid 
little  attention  to  quality  or  breeds.    In  time  it  was  found 


THE  INDUSTRIES  OF   KANSAS 


157 


Present  Day  Stock  Farm. 

that  better  grades  were  more  profitable,  and  the  early 
range  cattle  and  the  "scrub"  stock  of  the  pioneers  have 
disappeared. 

When  the  Union  Pacific  Railroad  was  built  the  cattle- 


The  Cowboy  was  a  Familiar  Figure  in  Kansas  Forty  Years  Ago. 


158  A   HISTORY  OF  KANSAS 

men  of  Texas  began  driving  their  cattle  into  Kansas  in 
order  to  ship  them  to  market.  For  many  years  Abilene  was 
the  shipping  center.  When  the  Santa  Fe  Railway  was 
built,  Wichita,  being  farther  south,  became  the  chief 
shipping  point.  As  the  country  became  more  thickly  set- 
tled the  cattle  trade  was  pushed  farther  west.  Finally  it 
reached  Dodge  City  which  remained  the  shipping  center 


In  Full  Bloom. 

for  many  years.  The  building  of  railroads  into  the  South- 
west made  it  unnecessary  for  the  Texas  cattlemen  to 
drive  their  stock  to  a  Kansas  shipping  point,  and  about 
1885  the  practice  was  abandoned.  While  the  trade  flour- 
ished, the  cowboy,  with  his  boots  and  spurs  and  broad- 
brimmed  hat,  was  a  familiar  figure  on  the  plains  of  west- 


THE   INDUSTRIES   OF   KANSAS 


159 


Horticulture 


ern  Kansas;  but  as  the  settlers  turned  the  grazing  land 

into  farms  the  cowboy  moved  farther  west. 

Another  Kansas  industry  is  horticulture,  the  cultivation 

of  fruits.  The  first  orchard  in  Kansas  was  planted  at 
Shawnee  Mission  in  1837.  Very  little  tree 
planting  was  done,  however,  until  after  the 

Civil  War,  and  even  then  the  Kansas  plains  were  for  many 

years  regarded  as  unfit  for  fruit  growing.    The  early  crops 

were  small  but  of  a  very  fine 
quality,  and  Kansas  apples 
won  the  gold  medal  at  the 
Centennial  Exposition  at 
Philadelphia  in  1876.  This 
aroused  much  enthusiasm, 
and  during  the  next  few 
years  many  thousands  of 
fruit  trees  were  planted,  but 
most  of  them  proved  worth- 
less because  the  varieties 
were  not  adapted  to  condi- 
tions in  this  State.  Long 
years  of  hard  work  and  pa- 
tient effort  were  required  to 
secure  the  knowledge  neces- 
sary  to    make  a  successful 


Kansas  Apples, 
fruit  state  of   Kansas 


To-day  there  are  many  fruits 
grown  here,  but  it  is  the  Kansas  apple  that  is  famous. 
Scarcely  a  farm  in  the  eastern  and  central  parts  of  the 
State  is  without  its  orchard,  and  there  are  a  number  of 
commercial  orchards  that  are  making  horticulture  an  im- 
portant industry  in  Kansas. 

The  farmers  of  the  State  have  at  different  times,  espe- 
cially in  the  earlier  years,  formed  a  number  of  organiza- 
tions.   An  early  organization  was  the  Order  of  Patrons  of 


160 


A   HISTORY   OF   KANSAS 


Husbandry,  or  the  "Grange/'  a  national  movement,  intro- 
duced into  Kansas  in  1872.  Its  general 
wga!i!Iations  purpose  was  the  improvement  of  farm  life. 
Many  granges  were  organized  during  the 
'70's.  The  Farmers'  Cooperative  Association,  begun  in 
1873,  and  the  Farmers'  Mutual  Benefit  Association  in 
1883,  had  for  their  general  purposes  the  cooperation  of  the 
farmers  in  buying  and  selling  and  in  securing  lower  freight 
rates. 


One  of  the  Crops  of  Central  and  Western  Kansas. 

About  1888  the  Farmers'  Alliance,  already  a  national 
organization,  formed  many  local  organizations  in  Kansas. 
The  Alliance  demanded  a  number  of  measures  for  the 
betterment  of  the  farmers,  including  lower  freight  and 
passenger  rates,  and  better  mortgage,  debtor,  and  tax 
laws.  The  Farmers'  Alliance  was  a  widespread  movement 
and,  for  a  time,  overshadowed  all  other  farmers'  organiza- 


THE   INDUSTRIES  OF   KANSAS  161 

tions.  In  1890  the  People's  party,  or  the  Populist  party/ 
as  it  came  to  be  called,  took  over  the  political  work  of  the 
Farmers'  Alliance,  and  that  organization  gradually  dis- 
appeared. The  Farmers'  Educational  and  Cooperative 
Union  of  Kansas  is  a  more  recent  organization. 

In  1872  the  Agricultural  Society,  organized  during  the 
Civil  War,  was  changed  into  the  State  Board  of  Agricul- 
ture. For  a  number  of  years  this  Board 
of"  Agrkidt^r'^  gave  especial  attention  to  gathering  and 
distributing  information  concerning  the 
resources  of  the  State  for  the  purpose  of  stimulating  immi- 
gration. Later  it  began  the  work  of  furnishing  to  the 
farmers  information  concerning  methods  of  farming  best 
adapted  to  Kansas  conditions.  These  activities  have  been 
continued,  and  the  Board  of  Agriculture  has  been  of  great 
practical  value  to  the  State. 

The  Agricultural  College  in  its  early  years  laid  but  little 
stress  on  agricultural  and  industrial  work,  but  in  1873  its 
plan  of  work  was  changed  and  it  soon 
^Uu^ral^CoUe^'"  began  to  fulfill  its  real  mission.  A  few 
years  later  the  usefulness  of  the  College 
was  greatly  increased  by  the  establishment  of  an  experi- 
ment station  where  investigations  are  carried  on  in  such 
matters  as  the  testing  of  seeds,  the  introduction  of  new 
crops,  the  rotation  of  crops,  dairy  and  animal  husbandry, 
butter  and  cheese  making,  orchard  and  crop  pests,  stock 

1.  The  Populist  party  was  formed  as  a  result  of  the  political 
unrest  following  the  collapse  of  the  boom.  The  Populist  measures 
attracted  widespread  attention,  and  the  party,  in  fusion  with  the 
Democrats,  succeeded  in  electing  Governor  Lewelling  in  1892  and 
Governor  Leedy  in  1896.  By  that  time  conditions  in  the  State  had 
become  more  settled;  with  returning  prosperity  the  political  agita- 
tion died  down  and  the  Populists  were  soon  absorbed  into  the  other 
parties.  Since  that  time  many  of  the  measures  advocated  by  the 
Populists  have  been  enacted  into  law  or  are  being  considered  by 
the  people  of  to-day. 
—11 


162 


A  HISTORY  OF  KANSAS 


foods,  and  diseases  of  live  stock.  Branch  experiment  sta- 
tions have,  in  later  years,  been  established  at  Hays,  Garden 
City,  Dodge  City,  Tribune,  and  Colby,  where  problems 
peculiar  to  the  western  part  of  the  State  are  studied.  The 
Agricultural  College  is  doing  a  great  work  in  gather- 
ing information  and  bringing  it  to  the  people  by  means  of 
bulletins,  lectures,  correspondence  courses,  demonstration 
trains,  demonstration  agents,  and  farmers'  institutes. 
Kansas  was  one  of  the  first  states  to  hold  a  Farmers'  In- 
stitute in  connection  with  its  Agricultural  College.  This 
work  was  begun  in  1869,  and  the  purpose  was  then,  as  it  is 
to-day,  to  promote  the  knowledge  of  scientific  agriculture. 


One  of  the  Early  Flouring  Mills. 

The  agricultural  resources  of  Kansas  have  led  to  the 
development  of  a  number  of  manufacturing  industries. 
One  of  the  oldest  of  these  is  milling.  Among  the  first 
needs  of  the  settlers  of  the  new  country  was  a  means  of 


THE  INDUSTRIES  OF   KANSAS  163 

grinding  their  com  and  wheat  into  meal  and  flour  for 
Manufactures  family  use.  This  caused  the  building  of 
based  on  small    gristmills    in    every    community, 

agriculture  ^^^  ^^  ^^^^  ^^^  ^^jj^  ^j^^^^  streams 

and  were  run  by  water  power,  though  a  few  of  the  early 
ones  used  wind  power.  In  later  years  steam  has  come  to 
be  generally  used.  After  the  introduction  of  the  hard 
wheats,  the  wheat  crop  came  to  be  much  more  certain,  the 
acreage  increased,  and  the  milling  industry  grew.  Kansas 
flour  is  now  sold  in  all  the  important  markets  of  the 
world,  and  Kansas  is  one  of  the  leading  states  in  the  mill- 
ing industry. 

Meat  packing  has  held  first  place  among  the  manu- 
facturing industries  of  Kansas  for  a  number  of  years. 
Kansas  City,  the  second  greatest  packing  center  in  the 
United  States,  is  the  chief  market  for  Kansas  live  stock, 
but  there  are  several  packing  houses  in  different  parts  of 
the  State.  Creameries,  canning  factories,  and  pickling 
works  represent  other  industries  that  have  been  developed 
to  make  use  of  our  agricultural  products. 

Although  Kansas  is  not  one  of  the  great  mining  states, 
it  has  a  number  of  valuable  mineral  resources,  the  chief  of 
which  are  coal,  lead,  zinc,  oil,  gas,  salt, 
i^dusTries'*'  building  stone,  and  gypsum.  These  re- 
sources form  the  basis  of  an  important 
part  of  the  industrial  life  of  the  State.  The  coal  and  gas 
have  made  possible  a  number  of  manufacturing  industries. 

As  early  as  the  Territorial  period  it  was  known  that 
there  were  coal  fields  in  Kansas,  and  small  amounts  of 
^    -  coal  were  mined  in  Crawford  and  Cherokee 

counties.  Immediately  after  the  Civil  War 
the  settlers  in  the  southeastern  part  of  the  State  gave  much 
attention  to  the  digging  of  coal,  some  of  which  lay  so  near 
the  surface  that  it  could  be  uncovered  with  a  plow.    With- 


THE  INDUSTRIES  OF   KANSAS  165 

in  the  next  few  years  coal  was  found  in  Osage  and  Leaven- 
worth counties  and  in  the  vicinity  of  Fort  Scott.  These 
places  produced  large  amounts,  but  Crawford  and  Chero- 
kee counties  soon  came  to  be  the  leading  coal  district  of 
the  State.  At  the  present  time  about  nine-tenths  of  the 
Kansas  output  is  mined  in  these  two  counties.  The  im- 
portance of  the  coal  fields  of  Kansas  lies  not  only  in  the 
value  of  the  coal,  but  in  the  stimulation  of  the  growth  of 
manufactures.  Many  industries  can  be  carried  on  only 
by  means  of  large  amounts  of  fuel  to  supply  power.  The 
development  of  a  number  of  such  industries  in  Kansas  has 
been  made  possible  chiefly  by  the  cheap  and  abundant 
supply  of  coal. 

Before  Kansas  was  organized  as  a  Territory  lead  mining 
was  an  important  industry  in  southwest  Missouri,  but 
not  until  1876  was  it  discovered  that  the 
lead  and  zinc  field  extends  into  the  south- 
east comer  of  Kansas.  Prospecting  began  at  once  and 
thousands  of  people  were  soon  on  the  ground.  Although 
zinc  was  found  in  abundance  with  the  lead,  but  little  atten- 
tion was  paid  to  it.  Within  a  few  years,  however,  it  was 
found  that  the  abundance  of  coal  made  the  smelting  of  zinc 
profitable,  and  zinc  soon  assumed  the  leading  place.  For 
a  number  of  years  much  more  zinc  than  lead  has  been  pro- 
duced. A  large  amount  of  ore  from  the  Missouri  mines  is 
shipped  to  the  Kansas  smelters,  and  the  smelting  of  lead 
and  zinc,  but  particularly  of  zinc,  has  come  to  be  one  of  the 
most  important  of  our  mineral  industries.  The  develop- 
ment of  the  gas  field  furnished  a  cheaper  and  more  abun- 
dant fuel  than  coal,  and  much  of  the  smelting  was  soon 
being  done  where  gas  could  be  used.  In  later  years  gas 
is  less  abundant  and  there  is  a  tendency  to  return  to  the 
use  of  coal. 

Although  prospecting  had  been  done  in  earlier  years,  the 


166 


A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 


Oil  and  gas 


real  development  of  oil  and  gas  in  Kansas  began  about 
1892,  with  the  discovery  of  the  big  Kansas- 
Oklahoma  field.  The  oil  and  gas  area  is 
included  within  an  irregular  strip,  forty  to  fifty  miles  wide, 
extending  from  Kansas  City  southwesterly  into  Oklahoma. 

It  is  frequently  spo- 
ken of  as  the  "oil 
and  gas  belt." 

By  1900  nearly 
every  town  in  the 
gas  belt  had  more 
gas  than  it  knew 
what  to  do  with, 
and  various  man- 
ufacturing enter- 
prises, such  as  brick 
plants,  zinc  smelt- 
ers, glass  factories, 
and  Portland  ce- 
ment mills,  were 
soon  attracted  to 
these  towns.  A 
little  later  gas  was 
being  supplied  to 
cities  outside  of  the 
gas  belt.  Pipe  lines 
were  laid  to  Wel- 
lington, W  i  c  h  i  t  a, 
Hutchinson,  To- 
peka,  Lawrence, 
Kansas  City,  Leav- 
enworth, Atchison, 
Oil  Well,  or  "Gusher."  ^^^    ^^^ny   of    the 

towns  between.     With  ten  years  of  this  great  increase 


THE  INDUSTRIES  OF   KANSAS 


167 


in  the  use  of  gas  there  has  come  to  be  a  fear  that  the  sup- 
ply may  fail  at  no  distant  date. 

In  the  earlier  years  oil  was  considered  of  much  greater 
importance  than  gas.  At  first  the  oil  was  all  carried  in 
tank  cars,  but  a  system  of  pipe  lines  was  soon  laid.  Many 
refineries  were  soon  established.  The  crude  oil  is  used 
chiefly  for  fuel  and  for  machine  oil.  In  the  refineries  it  is 
made  into  benzine,  gasoline,  and  kerosene.  Vaseline  and 
paraffin  are  among  the  by-products. 

Salt  is  found  in  Kansas  as  a  brine  in  the  salt  marshes, 
and  as  beds  of  rock  salt  lying  beneath  the  surface.  The 
marshes  were  known  to  the  early  hunters 
and  settlers,  and  through  the  early  years 
of  statehood  a  little  salt  was  manufactured  from  this  brine. 
In  the  late  '80's  the  rock  salt  beds  were  discovered  and  the 


Salt 


i 

I 

*^.l!T;|    '-..'Hll   l.t    1    I     1    1    1    i    '     .    i    i    .    «        tj^ 

^1  .  i^l'.-.il'i  '.^ 

;  ■^.. 

LiJ3P..-*SS; 

^    .*,  ..«'   . 

Salt  Plant  at  Hutchinson. 


salt-making  industry  was  rapidly  developed.  The  center 
of  the  salt  industry  is  now,  as  it  has  been  from  the  begin- 
ning, at  Hutchinson.     Salt  is  found  in  a  large  part  of 


168 


A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 


Kansas,  but  the  most  valuable  area  extends  across  the 
middle  of  the  State  from  north  to  south.  This  great  bed 
of  salt  is  in  most  places  from  two  hundred  and  fifty  to  four 
hundred  feet  thick.  Some  salt  is  made  by  crushing  the 
rock  salt,  but  the  greater  portion  is  made  by  the  evapora- 
tion of  brines.  The  brines  are  obtained  by  forcing  a  stream 
of  water  through  rock  salt. 


Stone  Quarry. 

Brickmaking  in  Kansas  dates  from  the  early  years. 
Brick  clays  are  found  in  many  parts  of  the  State,  but  the 
industry  is  carried  on  chiefly  in  the  eastern 
part  of  the  State,  especially  in  the  gas  belt, 
because  of  the  fuel  supply. 

Gypsum  beds  are  found  in  the  central  part  of  Kansas, 


Brick 


THE  INDUSTRIES  OF  KANSAS  169 

especially  around  Blue  Rapids  and  in  Saline,  Dickinson, 
and  Barber  counties.     Plaster  of  Paris, 
used  chiefly  for  making  plaster  for  cover- 
ing wall  surfaces,  is  made  from  gypsum. 

Portland  cement  is  a  comparatively  new  product  in 
the  United  States.     The  development  of  this  industry  in 

„   ,.     ,  ,    Kansas  commenced  about  1900.    Portland 

Portland  cement  ^  .  ,      .  .    .  .    ,  /. 

cement  is  made  from  certam  mixtures  of 

rock  substances,  put  through  processes  of  grinding  and 

heating.     Its  chief  use  is  in  making  concrete,  which  is 

widely  used  for  construction  work.    There  are  a  number 

of  Portland  cement  mills  in  the  gas  belt. 

Gas  is  the  most  satisfactory  fuel  for  glass-making  and 
since  the  gas  field  in  Kansas  was  opened  a  number  of  glass 
factories  have  been  established  in  the 
State.  Sand  of  a  good  quality  for  mak- 
ing glass  has  also  been  found  in  southeastern  Kansas. 

At  present  there  are  numbers  of  factories  in  Kansas, 
engaged  in  many  different  lines  of  work.  Our  industries 
Agriculture  the  ^^^  constantly  growing  in  number  and 
basis  of  material  importance  and  it  takes  all  of  them  to 
progress  ^^^^  ^  well-rounded  state,  but  it  is  the 

agricultural  industries  that  form  the  basis  of  our  pros- 
perity. On  these  we  must  depend,  and  the  history  of  agri- 
culture in  Kansas  is,  largely,  the  history  of  our  material 
progress. 

SUMMARY 

The  principal  agricultural  industries  of  the  State 
are  farming,  stock  raising  and  horticulture.  The  prin- 
cipal mineral  industries  are  concerned  with  coal,  lead, 
zinc,  oil,  gas,  salt,  building  stone,  and  gypsum.  The 
leading  manufacturing  industries  are  concerned  largely 
with  agricultural  and  mineral  products,  and  are  carried 
on  most  extensively  in  the  coal  and  gas  regions. 


170  A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 

Drouths,  which  occur  in  all  agricultural  regions,  have 
been  most  severe  in  Kansas  in  the  following  years:  1860, 
1869,  1874,  1887,  1893,  1913.  These  years  have  marked 
into  periods  what  has  otherwise  been  a  steady  progress 
in  agriculture. 

The  Agricultural  Society,  organized  during  the  Civil 
War,  was,  in  1872,  changed  into  the  State  Board  of 
Agriculture.  The  Agricultural  College,  established  dur- 
ing the  Civil  War,  began  active  work  along  agricultural 
lines  in  1873.  There  have  been  a  number  of  organiza- 
tions of  farmers,  most  of  them  between  1870  and  1890. 

Advancement  in  agriculture  has  been  made  in  area 
under  cultivation,  selection  of  crops,  improvements  in 
machinery,  better  methods  of  tillage,  and  irrigation.  The 
leading  crops  are  now  corn,  wheat,  and  alfalfa. 

REFERENCES 

Bulletins  and  Reports  of  the  State  Board  of  Agriculture. 
Bulletins  and  Reports  of  the  Agricultural  College. 
Andreas,  History  of  Kansas,  pp.  252-265. 
Blackmar,  Kansas,  Selected  Topics. 
Old  Newspaper  Files. 

Historical  Collections,  vol.  ix,  pp.  33,  94,  480;  vol.  xi,  pp.  81- 
211;  vol.  XII,  p.  60. 

Walters,  History  of  the  Agricultural  College. 

Tuttle,  History  of  Kansas. 

Prentis,  History  of  Kansas,  pp.  232-234,  292-295. 

Publications  of  the  University  Geological  Survey  of  Kansas. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  What  is  the  leading  industry  of  Kansas? 

2.  Discuss  the  Indians  as  farmers. 

3.  What  agricultural  progress  was  made  during  the  Territorial 
period?    During  the  Civil  War? 

4.  When  and  why  was  the  Agricultural  Society  formed?  What 
has  taken  its  place?  Tell  something  of  the  work  of  the  new  organi- 
zation. 

5.  Describe  the  early  farm  implements  and  methods  of  farming. 
What  have  you  learned  of  these  things  from  old  settlers? 

6.  What  were  the  agricultural  conditions  in  Kansas  in  1880? 
Between  1880  and  1887? 


THE  INDUSTRIES  OF   KANSAS  171 

7.  What  connection  does  the  date  1887  have  with  the  agri- 
cultural history  of  the  State?  What  conditions  followed  this 
date? 

8.  What  are  the  soil  and  climate  conditions  of  western  Kansas? 
Give  an  account  of  irrigation  in  that  section. 

9.  Name  new  crops  that  came  into  prominence  about  1890, 
and  tell  something  of  each. 

10.  What  conditions  prevailed  in  Kansas  in  the  early  '90'8? 
During  the  period  that  followed? 

11.  Discuss  Kansas  wheat;  Kansas  corn. 

12.  Discuss  the  live-stock  industry  in  Kansas. 

13.  Give  an  account  of  the  cattle  trade  of  earlier  days. 

14.  What  progress  has  horticulture  made  in  Kansas? 

15.  What  farmers'  organizations  have  been  formed?  For 
what  purpose? 

16.  Discuss  the  relation  of  the  Agricultural  College  to  the 
farmers. 

17.  Discuss  the  milling  industry  of  our  State.  The  meat- 
packing industry. 

18.  Name  the  mineral  resources  of  Kansas.    Discuss  each. 

19.  What  manufacturing  industries  have  grown  from  the 
mineral  resources? 

20.  What  industries  are  carried  on  in  your  community?  Are 
any   others   being   considered  V 


CHAPTER  XVI 

THE  RAILROADS  OF  KANSAS 

About  the  time  Kansas  was  becoming  the  highway  for 
the  Santa  Fe  trade,  experiments  were  being  made  in  Eng- 
The  beginning  of  ^^^^  ^ith  a  new  invention,  the  steam  loco- 
failroads  in  the  motive.  By  1825  a  fair  degree  of  success 
United  States  ^^^  ^^^^  attained.  During  the  next  half 
dozen  years  experiments  were  carried  on  in  the  United 
States,  and  by  1831  several  short  railroad  lines  were  in  use. 
By  1850  one  could  travel  by  rail  between  the  chief  cities 
of  the  East  and  as  far  west  as  St.  Louis,  but  a  decade  more 
passed  before  any  railroads  were  built  in  Kansas. 

The  agitation  for  railroads  in  this  part  of  the  country 
began  even  before  the  organization  of  the  Kansas  Terri- 
tory. The  settlers  knew  the  difficulty  of 
de^s^re  rfilroadl  building  up  the  State  without  the  aid  of  the 
railway.  They  had  crept  across  the  prai- 
ries in  their  canvas-covered  wagons,  or  had  toiled  up  the 
shallow,  sluggish  waterways,  and  they  foresaw  that  they 
would  be  unable  to  market  their  crops  or  their  stock  be- 
cause of  the  lack  of  adequate  means  of  transportation. 
Their  great  desire  for  railroads  is  made  evident  by  the 
large  number  of  railway  charters  granted  to  different  com- 
panies by  the  Territorial  Legislatures.  On  account  of  the 
immense  cost  of  railroad  construction,  however,  work  was 
slow  to  begin. 

While  the  West  was  waiting  for  its  railroads  a  number 
of  stage  routes  for  carrying  mail  and  passengers  were 
established.     The  first  one  was  over  the  Santa  Fe  Trail. 

(172) 


THE  RAILROADS  OF   KANSAS 


173 


Stages  made  the  trip  from  Kansas  City  to  Santa  Fe  in 

about  fifteen  days.    For  many  years  stage 

arys  ge  ines    ^^^^  ^^^  operated  between  the  different 

towns  of  the  Territory.    Later,  lines  were  established  to 
Denver,  to  Salt  Lake,  and  even  to  San  Francisco. 


Stage  Coach. 

The  trip  to  San  Francisco,  a  distance  of  about  2000 
miles,  occupied  nearly  a  month,  and  the  people  of  Califor- 
nia were  very  anxious  that  a  quicker  way 
Express!  1859-*61  ^^  Setting  their  mails  be  devised.  To  meet 
this  demand  the  Pony  Express  was  estab- 
lished in  1859.  The  line  extended  from  St.  Joseph  to  San 
Francisco,  a  long,  lonely  way  across  plains  and  deserts  and 
over  mountains,  sometimes  in  a  straight  line  but  often 
winding  through  dark  canons  or  along  the  edge  of  mountain 
precipices.  The  Pony  Express  required  one  hundred  and 
ninety  stations,  nearly  five  hundred  horses,  and  eighty 
riders.    The  stations  averaged  about  ten  miles  apart.    The 


174  A  HISTORY  OF  KANSAS 

horses  were  selected  for  their  speed  and  endurance,  and  the 
distance  from  one  station  to  another  was  covered  in  the 
shortest  possible  time.  At  each  station  a  fresh  horse  was 
waiting  and  the  only  delay  was  in  changing  the  mail  pouch 
from  one  horse  to  the  other.  The  pouch  contained  only 
letters,  and  they  were  written  on  the  thinnest  of  paper  to 
avoid  surplus  weight.  Five  dollars  was  charged  for  the 
carrying  of  each  letter.  The  first  trip  was  made  in  ten 
days,  the  shortest  one  in  seven  days  and  seventeen  hours. 
Many  stories  of  adventure  are  related  of  the  two  years  in 
which  the  Pony  Express  was  in  operation.  In  1861  a  tele- 
graph line  was  constructed  across  the  continent,  which 
made  it  possible  to  flash  news  from  ocean  to  ocean  in  a  few 
seconds,  and  the  Pony  Express  went  out  of  existence. 

By  this  time  railroad  building  had  begun  in  Kansas. 
The  first  road  was  laid  in  the  spring  of  1860,  while  Kansas 

was  still  a  territory,  between  Elwood,  oppo- 
h?'KansL?i86o'*  site  St.  Joseph,  Missouri,  and  Marysville. 

When  the  first  five  miles  of  rail  had  been 
laid,  a  little  old  locomotive  that  had  done  service  on  many 
eastern  roads  was  brought  into  the  State  and  a  celebration 
was  held  in  honor  of  the  first  trip.  Though  the  engine  was 
old  and  drew  only  a  few  fiat  cars  over  the  rough  and 
crooked  track,  it  was  an  important  event,  for  it  marked 
the  beginning  of  railroad  building  in  Kansas. 

There  had  long  been  talk  of  a  railroad  to  the  Pacific 
coast,  and  in  1862,  while  the  Civil  War  was  still  in  prog- 
The  Union  ^^^s.  Congress  granted  a  charter  for  such 

Pacific  Railroad,    a  line.     This  was  the  beginning  of  the 

Union  Pacific  Railroad.  It  was  to  be  built 
as  soon  as  possible  by  working  from  both  ends.  From 
the  east  the  road  was  to  pass  through  Nebraska  and  on 
toward  Salt  Lake,  and  from  the  west  it  was  to  be  built 
from  San  Francisco  eastward  until  the  two  lines  met.  This 


THE  RAILROADS  OF  KANSAS 


175 


The  Indian,  the  Soldier,  and  the  Builder. 

road  did  not  pass  through  Kansas,  but  while  it  was  being 
constructed  a  Hne  that  later  became  a  part  of  the  Union 
Pacific^  system  was  built  from  Kansas  City  westward, 
along  the  Kansas  River,  through  Manhattan,  Junction 
City,  and  Salina,  and  on  west  through  Denver  to  join  the 
main  line  at  Cheyenne.^ 

During  the  seven  years  spent  in  building  this  railroad 
many  difficulties  were  met  and  conquered.  Most  of  the 
country  along  the  line  was  without  timber,  fuel,  or  any  of 
the  necessary  supplies.  The  materials  for  construction 
were  brought  up  the  Missouri  River  by  steamboat  to 
Kansas  City.  From  this  point  they  were  hauled  by  train 
over  the  new  railroad  as  far  as  it  was  completed.  The 
Indians  opposed  the  work  because  it  meant  the  westward 


1.  This  line  was  at  first  called  the  Kansas  Pacific. 

2.  See  map,  page  28. 


176 


A   HISTORY  OF  KANSAS 


Early  Days  on  the  Union  Pacific. 

movement  of  civilization  and  the  settling  of  their  hunting 
grounds.  They  were  a  constant  source  of  danger  to  the 
whole  frontier  but  especially  to  the  railroad  builders.  The 
men  usually  went  to  their  work  armed,  and  stacked  their 
guns  ready  for  instant  use.  Sometimes  it  was  even  neces- 
sary to  guard  the  men  with  troops  while  they  worked. 
History  gives  many  accounts  of  Indian  massacres  com- 
mitted along  the  line  of  the  Union  Pacific  Railroad.  The 
entire  line  was  finished  in  1869. 

In  the  meantime  other  lines  had  been  chartered  through 
Kansas,  the  principal  one  being  the  Atchison,  Topeka  & 
Santa  Fe.     This  railroad  was  begun  at 
Topeka  in   1868  and   completed  to  the 
western  boundary  of  the  State  in  a  little 
more  than  four  years.    The  line  between 
Atchison  was  also  completed  within  this 
Atchison,  Topeka  &  Santa  Fe  has  since 


The  Atchison, 
Topeka  & 
Santa  Fe,  com- 
pleted in  1872 

Topeka  and 
period.    The 


THE  RAILROADS   OF   KANSAS 


177 


The  "  Iron  Trail "  Across  the  Prairies. 

been  extended  westward  to  the  coast  and  eastward  to 
Chicago,  and  many  branches  have  been  added.  This 
railroad  follows  the  general  direction  of  the  Santa  Fe  Trail 
across  the  eastern  half  of  the  State.  Near  Great  Bend  the 
track  runs  on  the  exact  course  of  the  old  highway,  and 
from  this  point  on  through  the  rest  of  the  State  they  are 
never  far  apart  and  often  coincide.  When,  in  1872,  the 
*' Santa  Fe,''  as  it  is  generally  called,  was  completed 
through  Kansas,  the  last  caravan  of  wagons  had  wound 
its  way  over  the  old  Trail.  The  trains  of  cars  rushing 
over  the  new  iron  trail  marked  another  advance  in  the 
westward  march  of  civilization. 

The  immense  cost  of  railroad  construction,  the  sparsely 
settled  country,  and  the  limited  amount  of  traffic,  made  the 
early  building  of  railroads  a  risky  undertaking.     But  rail- 


178  A  HISTORY  OF  KANSAS 

roads  were  needed    in  order  to  unite  the  West  to  the 

Railroad  com-  -^^^  ^^  ^^^^  ^^  ^^^  ^^^  development  of 
panics  receive  the  new  country,  and  in  order  to  eneour- 
land  grants  ^^^  ^j^^.^  building  Congress  adopted  the 

policy  of  making  liberal  land  grants  to  railroad  companies. 
The  Union  Pacific  through  Kansas  was  given  land  amount- 
ing to  a  strip  ten  miles  wide  on  each  side  of  its  line.  Several 
other  companies,  including  the  Atchison,  Topeka  &  Santa 
Fe,  received  grants  amounting  to  five  miles  on  each  side. 
This  policy  brought  about  the  rapid  building  of  rail- 
roads, but  when  the  State  became  fairly  well  supplied  the 
land  grants  were  discontinued.  Much  of  the  land  was 
later  forfeited  by  the  companies  through  failure  to  meet 
the  conditions  of  their  grants. 

When  the  early  railroads  were  first  built  across  Kansas 
there  were  but  few  people  living  in  the  western  part  of  the 

„  .,      ,  State.    Since  population  was  necessary  to 

Railroad  com-  ..         J^  , u  -i       ^  • 

panics  interested  the  prosperity  of  the  railroad  companies, 

in  the  settlement  these  companies  gave  much  attention  to 
the  matter  of  increasing  the  settlements 
along  their  lines.  They  sent  land  agents  throughout  the 
United  States  and  Europe,  they  invited  people  of  promi- 
nence to  join  excursions  through  Kansas,  and  they  filled 
the  newspapers  with  descriptions  of  the  great  West. 
Kansas  was  widely  and  favorably  advertised.  Interest 
was  everywhere  aroused  and  many  people  were  attracted 
to  the  State. 

The  railroad  companies  succeeded  in  planting  a  number 
of  colonies  of  foreigners  on  their  lands.    Among  them  were 
the  settlements  of  Mennonites  in  Reno, 
Se"menfs  Harvey,  Marion  and  McPherson  counties. 

These  people  came  from  Russia  for  reli- 
gious freedom.  "They  came  simultaneously  with  the 
grasshoppers  but  outstayed  them."    The  first  party,  in 


THE  RAILROADS  OF   KANSAS  179 

1874,  numbered  1900  people,  and  many  more  followed 
rapidly  until  there  are  now  many  thousands  of  these  people 
in  Kansas.  They  brought  a  considerable  amount  of  money 
with  them  and  were  able  to  purchase  their  land.  The 
Mennonites  were  farmers,  a  thrifty,  industrious  people 
who  have  contributed  much  toward  making  Kansas  a 
great  agricultural  State. 

Swedes  had  been  coming  to  Kansas  since  Territorial 
days.    In  1871  the  Union  Pacific  sold  a  large  tract  of  land 
in  Saline  Coimty  for  a  Swedish  settlement. 
fetflements  ^^^  settlement  has  increased  and  others 

have  been  formed  until  there  are  now  many 
people  of  this  nationality  in  Kansas.  Lindsborg,  almost 
entirely  Swedish,  is  their  religious  and  social  center.  It  is 
noted  for  its  school  of  music.  Most  of  these  people  came 
in  poverty,  but  they  have  converted  the  bare  prairies  into 
fine  agricultural  districts  and  have  become  prosperous 
citizens.  They  are  an  industrious,  intelligent,  progressive, 
and  law-abiding  people. 

Other  colonies  have  settled  in  various  parts  of  the  State; 
among  these,  German-Russians  in  Russell,  Rush,  and  Ellis 
Counties,  Scotch  in  Republic  County,  English  in  Clay 
County,  and  Bohemians  in  Ellsworth  County.  There  are, 
at  present,  people  of  many  nationalities  in  Kansas. 

Not  only  did  the  early  building  of  railroads  do  much  to 
bring  about  the  rapid  settlement  of  Kansas,  but  it  hastened     v^ 
Relation  of  rail-    ^^^  development  of  practically  all  of  the 
roads  to  State's    State's  industries.    For  instance,  the  rail- 
industries  roads  have  made  it  possible  for  the  farmer 

to  market  his  live  stock  and  his  crops.  Out  of  these  better 
market  facilities  have  grown  the  great  meat-packing 
centers  and  the  flouring  mills.  On  the  other  hand,  the 
growth  of  settlements  and  industries  has  brought  prosper- 
ity to  the  railroads  and  they  have  increased  in  wealth. 


180  A  HISTORY  OF  KANSAS 


A  Modern  Locomotive  and  One  of  1880. 

equipment,  and  mileage.  Thus  the  relation  between  the 
railroads  and  the  State's  progress  is  very  close. 

There  are  at  present  nearly  10,000  miles  of  railroad  in 
Kansas,  most  of  it  belonging  to  the  four  great  companies,, 
the  Atchison,  Topeka  &  Santa  Fe,  the  Missouri  Pacific, 
the  Union  Pacific,  and  the  Chicago,  Rock  Island  &  Pacific. 

There  has  been  but  little  railroad  building  in  Kansas 
for  a  number  of  years  for  the  State  is  now  fairly  well  sup- 
plied. Almost  every  county  now  has  one  or 
regulation  more  railroads.     In  the  earlier  years  the 

important  thing  was  to  get  the  railroads. 
Having  secured  them  the  matter  of  chief  concern  is  to 
regulate  them.  During  the  late  '70's  much  dissatisfac- 
tion arose  because  railroad  rates  were  high,  and  several 
attempts  were  made  to  place  the  matter  of  rate  regula- 
tion under  the  control  of  the  State.  In  1883  a  law  was 
passed  creating  a  Railroad  Commission  of  three  mem- 
bers. This  Commission  was  given  a  great  deal  of  power^ 
especially  in  regard  to  revising  and  establishing  rates,  and 
in  adjusting  disputes  between  the  railroads  and  their 
patrons.  Within  a  few  years,  through  the  efforts  of  the 
Commission  together  with  the  increase  in  business  result- 
ing from  a  growing  population,  rates  were  reduced  almost 
half.  Since  its  work  proved  to  be  of  great  service  to  the 
people  the  Commission  was  continued.  In  1911  the  Rail- 
road Commission  became  the  Public  Utilities  Commission, 


THE  RAILROADS  OF   KANSAS  181 

which  has  control  over  all  such  corporations  as  railroads, 
electric  lines,  and  telegraph  and  telephone  systems,  that 
render  public  service  within  the  State. 

SUMMARY 

Railroad  construction  was  begun  in  the  United  States 
about  1830.  By  1850  railroads  reached  as  far  west  as 
St.  Louis.  Many  stage  lines  were  established  in  early 
Kansas.  The  first  railroad  was  built  in  Kansas  in  1860; 
the  line  extended  from  Elwood  to  Marysville.  The  Union 
Pacific  was  built  through  Kansas  between  1862  and  1869. 
The  Atchison,  Topeka  &  Santa  Fe  Railway  was  com- 
pleted in  1872.  In  the  meantime  a  number  of  other  roads 
were  built.  The  railroads  received  large  grants  of  land, 
which  they  sold  to  settlers,  thereby  raising  money  and  in- 
creasing business.  They  advertised  Kansas  widely.  The 
people  soon  found  it  necessary  to  regulate  the  railroads, 
and  created  for  this  purpose  the  Railroad  Commission, 
now  the  Public  Utilities  Commission. 

REFERENCES 

Arnold.  Civics  and  Citizenship,  pp.  100-105, 141. 

Maps  and  Folders  published  by  the  railroad  companies. 
^>Blackmar,  Kansas,  vol.  n,  pp.  533-548. 

Elson,  History  of  the  United  States,  pp.  475,  618,  818. 

Prentis,  History  of  Kansas,  pp.  168-170,  184-186,  191-194. 

Historical  Collections,  vol.  viii,  p.  384;  vol.  xi,  p.  529;  vol.  xn, 
pp.  37,  47,  383;  vol.  ix,  p.  467;  vol.  vi,  p.  357. 

Reports  of  Interstate  Commerce  Commission  and  Public  Utili- 
ties Commission. 

Andreas,  History  of  Kansas,  pp.  241-252. 

Inman,  The  Old  Santa  Fe  Trail. 

Root  and  Connelley,  The  Overland  Stage  Route  to  California. 

Spring,  Kansas,  pp.  306-313. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  Give  an  account  of  the  beginning  of  railway  transportation  in 
the  United  States.     What  were  the  conditions  by  1850? 

2.  What  were  the  early  methods  of  travel  in  Kansas  ? 

3.  Why  were  the  early  settlers  anxious  for  railroads?  What  did 
they  do  to  secure  railroads? 


182  A   HISTORY   OF   KANSAS 

4.  Discuss  the  stage  lines.     The  Pony  Express. 

5.  When  and  where  was  the  first  railroad  built  in  Kansas? 

6.  Tell  something  of  the  building  of  the  main  line  of  the  Union 
Pacific. 

7.  Give  an  account  of  the  building  of  the  Union  Pacific 
through  Kansas.  What  were  some  of  the  difficulties  that  had  to  be 
overcome? 

8.  When  was  the  Atchison,  Topeka  &  Santa  Fe  built?  Give  its 
route. 

9.  Name  other  railroads  in  Kansas. 

10.  Why  were  land  grants  made  to  the  railroad  companies?  How 
did  the  railroad  companies  use  this  land? 

11.  Why  did  the  railroad  companies  advertise  Kansas?  What 
was  the  effect  on  the  State? 

12.  Locate  settlements  of  foreigners  in  Kansas. 

13.  Show  why  there  is  a  close  relation  between  the  people  and 
the  railroads. 

14.  Why  has  regulation  of  the  railroads  been  found  necessary? 
How  has  it  been  accomplished? 

15.  What  is,  approximately,  the  railroad  mileage  of  the  State? 

16.  What  lines  of  railroad  in  your  community? 


CHAPTER  XVII 

EDUCATION  IN  KANSAS 

The  first  schools  in  Kansas  were  the  mission  schools  for 
the  Indians.    When  Kansas  was  organized  as  a  Territory 

and  the  white  settlers  began  to  make  their 
h^'^Kanlaf*'*^*^    homes  here,  the  education  of  their  children 

became  one  of  their  first  interests.  In  the 
summer  of  1855  the  first  Territorial  Legislature  passed  a 
law  providing  for  the  establishment  of  common  schools, 
and  thus  laid  the  foundation  for  our  public  school  system. 
In  January  of  1855,  when  the  town  of  Lawrence  was 
only  six  months  old,  a  school  was  opened  in  the  back  of 

Dr.  Charles  Robinson's  office.  A  term  of 
schools  ^"^**°'^       school  was  held  in  Lawrence  every  winter 

thereafter.  Other  towns  also  maintained 
schools,  as  did  a  few  of  the  country  communities,  but  the 
settlers'  claims  were  so  widely  scattered  and  the  dangers 
during  the  days  of  raids  and  warfare  were  so  great  that 
country  schools  were  almost  an  impossibility  during  the 
first  few  years. 

Many  of  the  earlier  schools  were  "subscription  schools," 
which  means  that  they  were  not  public  schools  supported 

by  a  tax  levy,  but  that  the  teacher's  pay 
fctlfols^^*'*"         came  from  a  tuition  charged  each  pupil 

who  attended. 

By  1859,  when  Territorial  conditions  had  become  more 

settled,  the  Legislature  turned  its  attention  to  the  matter 

of  education  and  passed  a  set  of  school  laws  that  has 

served  ever  since  as  the  basis  of  our  system  of  educa- 

(183) 


184 


A  HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 


Sod  Schoolhouse. 

tion.    While  Kansas  was  still  a  Territory^ 
sch^oorsystem  ""^    ^  ^^^  districts  were  organized  and  school- 
houses   built,  and   the   minimum  school 
term  was  made  three  months. 

Little  educational  progress  was  made  during  the  Civil 
War,  but  when  peace  had  come  to  Kansas  and  the  people 
could  turn  their  minds  to  the  needs  of  .their 
Civil  War^*^*^  *^^  homes  and  communities,  schoolhouses  built 
of  logs  or  sod  sprang  up  everywhere,  for 
the  pioneers  had  brought  with  them  a  desire  to  educate 
their  children.  Sometimes  the  settlers  did  not  even  wait 
to  organize  their  district,  but  gathered  together  and  began 
work  on  their  schoolhouse.  Where  there  was  a  timber 
supply  they  made  their  building  of  logs.  On  the  prairie 
they  built  it  of  sod.  With  the  breaking  plow  they  sliced 
out  long  pieces  of  sod  from  two  to  four  inches  thick  and 
twelve  to  fourteen  inches  wide,  and  these,  mortared  with 
soft  mud,  were  used  like  brick  to  build  the  walls.    The  roof 


EDUCATION   IN   KANSAS 


185 


Interior  of  Sod  Schoolhouse. 

was  sometimes  of  lumber,  out  often  of  the  sod  laid  over  a 
framework  of  brush  and  poles.  Whether  the  building  was 
of  logs  or  of  sod,  the  floor  was  usually  of  dirt  sprinkled  and 
packed  until  it  was  hard  and  smooth.  As  the  country 
grew  in  population  and  resources  these  buildings  were  re- 
placed by  others  made  of  lumber,  brick,  or  stone,  but  the 
little  log  and  sod  schoolhouses  served  the  pioneers  well. 
They  were  used  not  only  for  school  purposes,  but  for  reli- 
gious services  and  for  social  gatherings,  spelling  schools, 
singing  schools,  and  literary  societies.  The  schoolhouses 
were  the  social  centers  in  early  Kansas. 

Although  the  minimum  term  was  three  months,  it 
was  usually  made  a  little  longer  for  the  benefit  of  the 
smaller  children.    As  a  rule  the  older  boys  and  girls  went 


186 


A   HISTORY  OF  KANSAS 


to  school  only  during  the  winter  months  when  they  could 
be  spared  from  the  farms.  The  work  in 
iJionJ^rs^chool^^  ^^e  schools  in  those  days  consisted  chiefly 
of  the  three  R's,  ''reading  'ritin'  and 
'rithmetic."  In  most  cases,  the  pupils  started  each  year  at 
the  beginning  of  their  books  and  worked  as  far  as  they 
could.  This  was  continued  winter  after  winter  until 
the  girls  and  boys  were  eighteen  to  twenty-one  years 
of  age,  or  even  older.  There  was  no  such  thing  as 
graduating  from  the  country  schools;  the  pupils  attended 
until  they  got  ready  to  quit.  Since  there  were  almost  no 
liigh  schools  in  the  State,  few  of  the  children  received  more 
than  a  common  school  education,  and  most  of  the  teachers 
Jiad  no  more  than  that. 


A  Present-day  Rural  School. 

Conditions  are  quite  different  in  the  country  schools 
to-day;  the  minimum  term  is  now  seven  months,  a 
truancy  law  covers  the  full  term,  the  work  is  arranged 
according  to    a  course  of  study,  the  qualifications   for 


EDUCATION   IN   KANSAS  187 

teachers  have  been  raised,  and  the  little  box  buildings 
are  being  replaced  by  better  ones,  in  the 
2ikflchooU  construction  of  which  beauty,  comfort, 
and  convenience  are  considered.  The 
work  of  the  schools  is  changing  to  meet  the  changed  con- 
dition of  the  times,  and  much  thought  is  being  given  to  the 


Consolidated  School,  with  Wagons  for  Conveyance  of  Pupils. 

problem  of  making  the  work  fit  still  more  closely  present- 
day  needs.  It  is  generally  recognized  as  very  desirable 
that  boys  and  girls  receive  instruction  in  such  subjects  as 
music,  manual  training,  agriculture,  and  donrestic  science, 
but  on  account  of  the  large  number  cf  classes  in  the  country 
schools  very  little  of  such  work  can  be  taught. 

Consolidation  is  generally  Icoked  upon  as  a  method  of 
bettering  conditions  in  the  rural  schools.  A  consolidated 
district  is  one  formed  ty  the  union  of 
ShlSS'**'^^  several  districts.  The  little  district  school- 
houses  are  replaced  by  a  larger  building, 
usually  centrally  located,  to  which  the  children  are  con- 
veyed in  wagons  provided  for  that  purpose.  With  its 
larger  valuation  the  consolidated  district  can  have  plenty 
of  teachers  and  equipment  and  can  offer  a  greater  variety 
of  subjects.    There  are  a  number  of  consolidated  schools 


A  High-school  Class  in  Domestic  Science. 


M|MHB^^^P^|y4^- ,  '  F  ,f  -  "3  ^^^^^^H 

A  High-school  Class  in  Manual  Training. 


EDUCATION   IN   KANSAS 


189 


A 


A  County  High  School. 

in  the  State  now,  and  the  plan  is  being  considered  in  many 
communities.  The  good  roads  movement  will  no  doubt 
do  much  to  encourage  consolidation. 

A  number  of  years  passed  before  there  were  many  high 
schools  in  Kansas,  and  in  most  of  the  early  ones  the  course 

was  brief.  Then  more  and  more  of  them 
higVschool'*^       began  to  prepare  pupils  for  college,  and 

this  work  was  for  a  long  time  looked  upon 
as  the  real  purpose  of  the  high  school.  In  late  years  the 
function  of  the  high  school  has  come  to  be  regarded  as  that 
of  supplying  to  the  great  mass  of  pupils  who  will  never  go 
to  college,  the  best  possible  preparation  for  the  business  of 
life.  The  course  has  been  broadened  to  include  such  work 
as  manual  training,  domestic  science,  music,  agriculture, 
commercial  work,  and  training  of  teachers.     The  high 


o 
p. 

B 


EDUCATION   IN   KANSAS  191 

school  has  grown  rapidly  in  popularity.  There  are  now 
more  than  five  hundred  high  schools  in  the  State.  They 
have  been  established  by  cities,  by  counties,  by  consoli- 
dated districts,  and  by  townships,  and  the  number  is 
steadily  increasing.  There  are  still,  however,  a  few  sparsely 
settled  counties  in  the  western  part  of  the  State  which 
have  no  high  schools.  Much  attention  is  being  given 
to  the  problem  of  bringing  to  every  Kansas  boy  and  girl 
the  privilege  of  a  high  school  education. 

The  deep  interest  of  the  Kansas  settlers  in  matters  of 
education  is  nowhere  more  apparent  than  in  their  early 
establishment  of  institutions  of  higher 
higher*iearnhig  learning.  In  the  first  Constitution,  made 
in  1855,  one  reads,  ''The  General  Assembly 
may  take  measures  for  the  establishment  of  a  university"; 
and  again,  *'  Provision  may  be  made  by  law  for  the  support 
of  normal  schools."  These  matters  were  not  lost  sight  of, 
and  almost  immediately  after  the  admission  of  Kansas  as 
a  state  this  ambition  found  expression  in  the  establishment 
of  the  Normal  School,  the  Agricultural  College,  and  the 
University. 

The  State  Normal  School  at  Emporia  opened  in  1865 
with  eighteen  students  enrolled.  It  used  the  upper  floor 
of  the  new  schoolhouse  that  had  just  been 
SchoSs""*'  built  for  Emporia,  which  was  then  but  a 
small  town.  There  was  no  furniture,  and 
the  equipment  consisted  of  a  Bible  and  a  dictionary.  Seats 
were  borrowed  from  a  neighboring  church.  But  the  Nor- 
mal soon  had  a  building  of  its  own.  In  later  years  this 
has  been  twice  replaced  by  a  larger  and  better  one  and 
many  new  buildings  have  been  added. 

The  Normal  School  is  based  on  the  principle  that  it  is 
not  only  necessary  to  know  what  to  teach  but  how  to  teach ; 
that  there  are  new  discoveries  and  advances  in  methods  of 


192 


A  HISTORY  OF  KANSAS 


Manual  Training  Normal  School,  Pittsburg. 

teaching  as  there  are  in  other  lines,  such  as  medicine  or 
farming.  The  purpose  of  the  Normal  School  is  to  train 
teachers. 

When  our  State  Normal  School  was  established  there 
were  not  more  than  a  dozen  other  such  schools  in  the 
United  States  and  none  that  prepared  teachers  for  high 
school  positions.  To-day  there  are  many  normal  schools, 
T3ut  none  larger  than  ours  or  more  amply  equipped  to  pre- 
pare students  for  all  lines  of  teaching.  The  course  of  study, 
reaching  from  the  kindergarten  to  the  completion  of  a 


EDUCATION   IN   KANSAS  193 

college  course,  places  our  State  Normal  School  in  the  front 
rank  of  institutions  of  its  kind. 

In  1901  the  Western  Branch  State  Normal  School  was 
established  at  Hays,  and  in  1903  another  branch,  the 
Manual  Training  Normal  School,  was  opened  at  Pittsburg. 
Each  of  these  has  recently  been  made  an  independent 
school.  The  one  at  Hays  is  now  known  as  the  Fort  Hays 
Kansas  Normal  School. 

In  1862  Congress  passed  an  act  providing  for  land  grants 
to  states  for  the  purpose  of  establishing  colleges  of  agri- 
culture and  mechanic  arts.  Kansas  was 
CoUegf  ^'"''^'''''^  among  the  first  states  to  accept  the 
endowment,  and  the  next  year  Blue- 
mont  Central  College,  a  Methodist  school  at  Manhat- 
tan, was  given  to  the  State  and  made  the  State  Agri- 
cultural College.  During  the  first  ten  years  the  growth 
of  the  Agricultural  College  was  very  slow.  This  was 
chiefly  due  to  the  fact  that  industrial  education  was  some- 
thing new  and  did  not  receive  much  attention.  The  College 
gave  only  a  little  work  in  agriculture  or  manual  training, 
and  what  was  given  was  merely  supplementary.  It  was 
doing  little  to  educate  toward  the  farm  or  the  workshop. 
In  1873  the  school  was  reorganized.  Farmers  began  to 
be  interested  in  it  and  to  discuss  its  possibilities.  Such 
subjects  as  Latin  and  Greek  were  dropped  and  agri- 
culture, home  economics,  and  mechanic  arts  were  em- 
phasized. Workshops,  print  shops,  kitchen  and  sewing 
rooms,  agricultural  implements,  and  live  stock,  were  pro- 
vided. This  was  a  very  advanced  step  at  that  time  and 
it  aroused  some  opposition.  It  was  called  the  "new- 
fangled" education,  and  farmers  who  read  and  studied 
methods  of  farming  were  often  sneered  at  as  *'book 
farmers."  But  in  time  people  began  to  view  these  things 
in  a  different  light.     It  has  now  come  to  be  generally 

—13 


EDUCATION   IN   KANSAS  195 

recognized  that  successful  farming  requires  a  broader  and 
more  varied  knowledge  than  almost  any  other  business, 
and  that  in  an  agricultural  state  like  ours  nothing  is 
more  important  than  the  training  of  its  citizens  for  home 
and  farm  life.  The  Agricultural  College  now  occupies  the 
position  of  leadership  in  the  agricultural  and  industrial  in- 
terests of  the  State,  and  is  one  of  the  largest  agricultural 
colleges  in  the  United  States. 

The  University  of  Kansas  was  established  by  an  act  of 
the  Legislature  of  1864,  and  its  object,  as  given  in  that  act, 
_,    WT  s      1.       is  to  ''provide  the  inhabitants  of  the  State 

The  University  .. ,  t  •  •  xu  u  i  i 

With  means  of  acqumng  a  thorough  knowl- 
edge of  the  various  branches  of  literature,  science,  and  the 
arts."  The  university  idea  is  hundreds  of  years  old,  and 
so  there  was  nothing  new  in  the  thought  of  a  university 
in  Kansas.  The  University  of  Kansas  was  built  on  the 
flat-topped  hill  in  Lawrence  where  the  first  party  of  free- 
state  settlers  pitched  their  tents.  It  was  opened  in  1866 
with  forty  students  and  three  professors.  To-day  there  are 
twenty  great  buildings  on  Mount  Oread.  The  central 
department  of  the  University  is  the  college,  which  provides 
a  liberal  education  in  languages,  sciences,  mathematics, 
history  and  kindred  subjects.  Besides  the  college  there 
are  schools  of  engineering,  of  fine  arts,  of  law,  of  pharmacy, 
of  medicine,  and  of  education.  Ours  now  ranks  high  among 
the  universities  of  the  United  States. 

All  together,  the  University,  the  Agricultural  College, 
and  the  Normal  Schools  employ  about  seven  hundred  in- 
structors and  enroll  between  eight  and 
State  Schools  ^^^  thousand  students  each  year.  The 
total  annual  cost  to  the  people  of  Kansas 
is  nearly  two  million  dollars.  These  schools,  together  with 
the  School  for  the  Blind  at  Kansas  City,  the  School  for 
the  Deaf  at  Olathe.  and  the  School  of  Mines  at  Weir  City, 


EDUCATION   IN   KANSAS 


197 


\^^^ 

■N 

1 

1  ■ 

Schoolhouse  used  as  a  Social  Center 

were,  in  1913,  placed  under  the  management  of  a  board 
of  three  members  called  the  Board  of  Administration. 

In  addition  to  the  State  institutions  Kansas  has  more 
than  thirty  denominational  colleges.    A  few  of  the  largest 

of  these  are  Baker  University  at  Baldwin, 
?oUeg?i"'"**"*'    Washburn    College   at   Topeka,    Ottawa 

University  at  Ottawa,  Friends  Univer- 
sity at  Wichita,  the  Southwestern  University  at  Winfield, 
and  the  College  of  Emporia.  There  are  also  a  number 
of  business  colleges  and  a  few  independent  schools. 

Besides  all  the  schools  where  the  people  of  Kansas  may 
obtain  an  education,  every  effort  is  being  made  to  provide 

other  educational  opportunities  by  means 
Si^'^du^catiin''"^  of  extension  work,  public  and  traveling 

libraries,  and  night  schools.  The  State 
Normal  School,  the  Agricultural  College,  and  the  Uni- 
versity all  do  extension  work,  which  means  that  they  offer 
correspondence  courses,  send  out  lecturers,  and  in  various 


198  A  HISTORY  OF  KANSAS 

other  ways  carry  their  work  to  those  who  can  not  attend 
the  schools.  Many  communities  maintain  free  pubhc 
Ubraries  and  the  State  maintains  a  traveling  library/ 
Night  schools  are  now  provided  in  several  of  our  larger 
cities.  An  education  is  now  possible  to  any  one  who 
really  wants  it. 

All  of  this  has  been  brought  about  within  little  more 
than  a  half  century,  and  though  there  is  much  yet  to  be 
done  the  people  of  Kansas  have  every  reason  to  be 
proud  of  what  they  have  accomplished  in  the  interests 
of  education. 

SUMMARY 

Education  in  Kansas  began  with  the  mission  schools 
and  was  one  of  the  first  interests  in  Territorial  days.  There 
were  many  subscription  schools  before  district  schools 
were  organized.  The  organization  of  districts  began  in 
the  Territorial  period  and  kept  pace  with  settlement.  The 
University,  the  Normal  School  and  the  Agricultural 
College  were  established  during  the  Civil  War.  Since  that 
time  many  denominational  colleges  have  been  estab- 
lished, the  high  school  has  been  developed,  and  many  other 
means  of  education  have  been  provided.  Great  educational 
progress  has  been  made. 

1.  The  traveling  library  system  in  Kansas  -^as  adopted  in  1900 
and  is  now  under  state  control  through  a  Commission  which  main- 
tains an  office  in  the  capitol  at  Topeka.  These  traveling  libraries 
are  made  up  of  collections  of  fifty  books  each,  selected  in  accordance 
with  the  wishes  of  the  applicant.  They  are  sent  to  schools,  clubs, 
granges,  and  similar  organizations  without  charge  other  than  a  fee 
of  two  dollars  to  cover  the  cost  of  transportation.  The  libraries  may 
be  retained  six  months,  or  exchanged  at  any  time  for  others. 


EDUCATION   IN    KANSAS  199 

REFERENCES 

Prentis,  History  of  Kansas,  chap.  xxxv. 

Historical  Collections,  vol.  vi,  pp.  70,  114;  vol.  vii,  pp.  167,  602; 
vol.  XI,  p.  424;  vol.  xil,  pp.  69,  77, 195. 
Catalogues  of  the  State  Schools. 
Reports  of  State  Department  of  Education. 
Statutes  of  Kansas. 
Blackmar,  Kansas,  Selected  Topics. 

Andreas,  History  of  Kansas,  General  and  County  Histories. 
Spring,  Kansas,  pp.  319-325. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  What  were  the  mission  schools? 

2.  When  did  the  settlers  become  interested  in  education? 

3.  What  was  done  in  education  during  the  Territorial  period? 

4.  What  were  subscription  schools? 

5.  Describe  the  early  schoolhouses.  Compare  them  with  the 
buildings  of  to-day. 

6.  How  did  work  in  the  early  schools  differ  from  work  in  the 
schools  of  to-day? 

7.  Give  the  history  of  the  growth  of  the  high  school. 

8.  Give  an  account  of  the  establishment  of  the  State  Normal 
School;  its  growth;  its  purpose.  What  other  normal  schools  do 
we  now  have? 

9.  When  and  where  was  the  Agricultural  College  established? 
Give  an  account  of  its  growth.    Its  work  to-day. 

10.  What  is  the  purpose  of  a  university?  When  and  where  was 
the  University  of  Kansas  established? 

11.  What  is  the  present  enrollment  and  cost  of  the  State  schools? 

12.  What  is  a  denominational  college?  Name  some  of  the  most 
important  of  the  denominational  colleges  in  Kansas. 

13.  What  other  opportunities  for  education  have  been  provided? 


'  Of  all  the  states,  but  three  will  live  in  story; 
Old  Massachusetts  with  her  Plymouth  Rock, 
And  Old  Virginia  with  her  noble  stock, 
And  Sunny  Kansas  with  her  woes  and  glory." 

— Eugene  F.  Ware. 


CHAPTER  XVIII 

KANSAS  MEMORIALS 

Kansas  is  a  comparatively  new  state.  Nearly  all  of  its 
history  has  been  made  within  little  more  than  a  century, 
and  most  of  it  within  the  sixty  years  of  its 
K^nlSrhistorf  P^nod  of  settlement.  Few  states,  how- 
ever, have  had  a  more  eventful  history. 
From  its  beginning  Kansas  has  been  a  place  of  action.  The 
pages  of  its  history  are  filled  with  wars  and  battles,  with 
stirring  adventure,  and  with  deeds  of  courage  and  daring. 
Nearly  every  part  of  the  State  has  its  places  of  historic 
interest,  and  the  names  of  men  and  women  who  should 
be  honored  for  good  and  brave  deeds  would  make  a  long 
list. 

The  people  of  Kansas  are  proud  of  the  history  of  their 
State  and  desire  to  preserve  it.  To  that  end  they  have 
taken  steps  to  save  a  number  of  the  old  landmarks,  they 
have  built  many  monuments,  and  have  gathered  and  kept 
many  records  of  the  past. 

One  of  the  early  landmarks  was  Pawnee  Rock  on  the 
old  Santa  Fe  Trail,  in  what  is  now  Barton  County.  This 
P  R    k        giant  rock  standing  on  the  level  plain  was 

a  noted  spot,  for  the  Trail  ran  near  its 
base,  and  while  it  provided  a  place  of  rest  and  safety  for 
many  a  weary  traveler,  it  also  afforded  a  retreat  from  which 
the  Indians  could  dash  down  upon  the  traders.  In  later 
years  much  of  the  rock  was  torn  away  for  building  pur- 
poses and  this  historic  old  landmark  was  rapidly  disappear- 
ing.   The  Woman's  Kansas  Day  Club  resolved  to  save  this 

(201) 


202 


A   HISTORY   OF   KANSAS 


Present  view  of  Pawnee  Rock. 

historic  spot,  and  secured  a  deed  for  the  Rock  aid  five 
acres  of  ground  surrounding  it.  On  Kansas  Day,  1909, 
the  women  presented  this  deed  to  the  State.  The  transfer 
was  made  with  the  condition  that  the  State  spend  $3000 
for  improvements.  This  was  done  and  the  preservation  of 
Pawnee  Rock  is  now  assured. 

The  exact  site  of  the  Pawnee  Indian  village  visited  by 
Lieutenant  Pike  in  1806  was  not  known  with  certainty  for 
many  years,  but  was  finally  found  to  be  in 
Me^morid  Republic  County.    It  was  located  through 

the  discovery  of  rows  of  circular  ridges 
supposed  to  have  been  the  embankments  of  the  Indian 
lodges.^  An  iron  fence  now  incloses  about  six  acres  of  the 
ground,  on  which  the  rings  are  still  plainly  visible,  and  a 
granite  shaft  stands  where  the  Stars  and  Stripes  first 
floated  over  Kansas.  The  monument  bears  the  inscription : 
"Erected  by  the  State  of  Kansas,  1901,  to  mark  the  site  of 


1.   The  place  was  discovered  in  1875  by  Mrs.  Elizabeth  A.  John- 
son, who  later  purchased  the  land  and  presented  it  to  the  State. 


KANSAS   MEMORIALS 


203 


the  Pawnee  Republic  where  Lieu- 
tenant Zebulon  M.  Pike  caused 
the  Spanish  flag  to  be  lowered 
and  the  flag  of  the  United  States 
to  be  raised,  September  29, 1806." 
The  Santa  Fe  Trail,  which  was 
associated  with  most  of  the  early 
history  of  Kansas,  was  known 
throughout  the 
country,  but  with 
the  settlement  of 
the  State  the  old  highway  was 
growing  dim;  the  ruts  were  fill- 
ing in,  grass  was  covering  the 
broad  track,  and  with  the  passing 
of  those  who  knew  it  in  the  old 
days  the  true  route  was  in  danger 
of  being  forgotten.  To  prevent 
this,  the  Daughters  of  the  Ameri- 
can  Revolution    began,   in   the 


Marking  of  the 
Santa  Fe  Trail 


Where  the  Stars  and  Stripes 
first  floated  over  Kansas. 


l^tlfS. 


W^'^ 


-yt^r'mi 


Santa  Fe  Trail  Marker. 


opening  years  of  the  pres- 
ent century,  to  agitate  the 
question  of  marking  the  line 
of  the  Trail  through  the 
State.  In  1905  the  Legis- 
lature appropriated  $1000 
"for  procuring  suitable 
monuments  for  this  pur- 
pose." Kansas  Day  of  1906 
was  designated  ''Trail  Day" 
in  the  public  schools,  and 
the  children  were  invited  to 
contribute    a    penny   each 


204 


A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 


,;fi-:-.AKs'i3itiiW**='*'< 

1 

SAMTA  FE   TRAJt 

1 

toward  the  fund.  They  gave  $584.40.  Eighty-nine  mark 
ers  were  purchased.  Various 
local  organizations  added  nine 
more,  making  a  total  of  ninety- 
eight  markers.  They  were 
placed  along  the  Trail  from 
the  eastern  to  the  western  end 
of  the  State.  They  bear  the 
inscription,  ''Santa  Fe  Trail 
1822-1872.  Marked  by  the 
Daughters  of  the  American 
Revolution  and  the  State  of 
Kansas,  1906."  A  few  of  the 
markers  bear  special  inscrip- 
tions in  addition  to  this.  The 
one  at  Council  Grove  has  on 
the  other  side,  ''On  this  spot, 
August  10,  1825,  the  treaty 
was  made  with  the  Osage 
Indians  for  the  right  of  way  of  the  Santa  Fe  Trail." 
The  old  stone  building  erected  at  Pawnee  for  the  capitol 
of  Kansas  still  stands  on  the  Fort  Riley  Reservation.    In 

„  r^    .^  ,     1907  a  subscription  fund  was  raised  and  the 

Pawnee  Capitol  /  .  xr.       i  j 

money  used  to  repair  and  restore  the  old 

building  so  that  it  will  stand  for  many  years  as  a  relic  of 

our  early  history. 

The  site  of  John  Brown's  battle-field  at  Osawatomie 

was  purchased  by  the  Woman's  Relief 

Corps  of  Kansas  and   presented   to  the 

State  in  1909. 

Each  State  is  permitted  to  place  two  statues  in  the 

Hall  of  Fame  in  the  National  Capitol  at  Washington.    In 

Statues  in  the        1905  one  of  the  Kansas  places  was  filled 

HaU  of  Fame        ^ith  a  statue  of  John  J.  Ingalls,  who  was 


Santa  Fe  Trail  Marker,  with 
local  inscription. 


John  Brown's 
battle-field  I 


KANSAS   MEMORIALS 


205 


a  Senator  from  this  State  from  1873  to  1891.  In  1913 
the  other  place  was  filled  with  a  statue  of  George  W.  Glick, 
who  was  Governor  of  Kansas  from  1883  to  1885. 


■■■1 

■'    I  I  1   ll 

11  n 

- 

Old  Pawnee  Capitol  on  the  Fort  Riley  Military  Reservation. 

A  number  of  monuments  have  been  erected  in  various 
parts  of  the  State  in  commemoration  of  noted  persons  or 
Other  events.     The  John  Brown  monument  at 

monuments  Osawatomie  was  dedicated  on  August  30, 

1877.  It  bears  two  inscriptions:  "In  commemoration  of 
those  who,  on  the  30th  of  August,  1856,  gave  up  their  lives 
at  the  battle  of  Osawatomie  in  defense  of  freedom,"  and, 
'*This  inscription  is  also  in  commemoration  of  the  heroism 
of  Captain  John  Brown,  who  commanded  at  the  battle  of 
Osawatomie,  August  30,  1856;  who  died  and  conquered 
American  slavery  on  the  scaffold  at  Charlestown,  Virginia, 
December  2,  1859." 


206 


A   HISTORY   OF   KANSAS 


A  splendid  monument  has  been  erected 
in  Linn  County  to  mark  the  graves  of  the 
victims  of  the  Marais  des  Cygnes  massacre. 
At  Lawrence  there  is  a  monument  bear- 
ing this  inscription:  "Dedicated  to  the 
memory  of  the  one  hundred  and  fifty  citi- 
zens who,  defenseless,  fell  victims  to  the 
inhuman  ferocity  of  border  guerrillas,  led 
by  the  infamous  Quantrill  in  his  raid  upon 
Lawrence,  August  21,  1863.  Erected  May 
30,  1895." 

A  monument  has  been  raised  near 
Junction  City  in  honor  of  the  expedition 
of  Coronado.  There  are  several  other 
monuments  in  the  State  commemorating 
the  Spanish  explorations  of  1541-1542. 

Monuments  have  been  dedicated  to  the 
memory  of  settlers  killed  in  the  Indian 
raids  on  the  frontier,  and  to  men  who 
were  killed  by  Indians  while  engaged 
in  construction  work  on  the  Union 
Pacific  Railroad. 

These  are  only  a  few;  many  tab- 
lets, monuments,  and  markers  have 
been  erected  in  Kan- 
sas, but  by  far  the 
greatest  number  of  them  are  monu- 
ments in  honor  of  the  soldiers  of 
the  Civil  War.  Many  of  these  are 
very  handsome,  and  they  have  cost, 
in  the  aggregate,  thousands  of  dol- 
lars; but  this  recognition  seemed  in- 
sufficient, and  it  had  long  been  hoped  that  a  handsome 
and  serviceable  building  might  be  erected  as  a  fitting 


The  John  Brown 
Monument. 


Memorial  Hall 


Marais  des  Cygnes 
Monument. 


KANSAS   MEMORIALS 


207 


Quantrill  Raid  Monument. 

and  worthy  recognition  by  the  whole  State  of  the  honor 
due  the  soldiers  and  sailors  of  the  Civil  War.  The  fulfill- 
ment of  this  ambition  finally  became  possible  when  the 
United  States  paid  to  Kansas  an  old  Civil  War  debt 
amounting  to  nearly  a  half-million  dollars.  The  money 
was  used  for  the  construction  of  Memorial  Hall.  This 
beautiful  structure,  built  of  white  marble,  stands  near  the 
grounds  of  the  State  Capitol  at  Topeka.  Part  of  Memo- 
rial Hall  is  to  be  used  as  headquarters  for  the  Kansas 
Department  of  the  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic,  and 
the  rest  by  the  State  Historical  Society. 

The  State  Historical  Society  was  organized  in  1875. 
From  that  time  until  the  present  the  Society  has  gathered 
and  kept  books,  writings,  narratives,  maps,  relics  and  other 
matter    relating    to  the    history   of    Kansas.     In  these 


208  A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 

collections  may  be  found  information  concerning  the 
explorations,  the  Indians,  the  overland 
ffistorica!  Society  travel,  the  settlements,  and  the  condition 
and  progress  of  the  State  in  its  various  de- 
partments. Volumes  of  clippings,  files  of  newspapers,  and 
thousands  of  books,  provide  a  very  complete  record  of  all 


An  old,  double-edged,  Spanish  sword  was  found  in  Finney  County 
some  years  ago  and  presented  to  the  State  Historical  Society. 
The  sword  bears  the  name  of  one  of  Coronado's  officers,  Juan 
Gallego.  On  the  blade,  in  Spanish,  are  the  words:  "Draw  me 
not  without  reason;  sheathe  me  not  without  honor." 

phases  of  the  State's  history.  One  of  the  interesting  fea- 
tures is  the  collection  of  relics,  among  which  are:  an  old 
Spanish  sword  supposed  to  have  belonged  to  one  of  Coro- 
nado's soldiers;  the  pistol  of  the  Jayhawker,  James 
Montgomery;  two  cannon  used  in  the  border  troubles; 
and  the  cap,  saddle,  and  sword  of  John  Brown.  There 
are  many  Indian  pipes,  ornaments,  implements,  arrow- 
heads, and  a  war  bonnet.  The  historical  collections, 
which  have  increased  from  year  to  year,  are  very  inter- 
esting and  should  be  seen  by  every  citizen  of  Kansas. 
The  Historical  Society  had  rooms  in  the  State  Capitol 
until  the  completion  of  Memorial  Hall,  when  it  was 
moved  into  the  new  building.  Thus  Memorial  Hall  stands 
as  a  tribute  not  only  to  the  soldiers  but  to  the  entire 
history  of  Kansas. 

SUMMARY 

In  late  years  Kansas  has  taken  many  steps  to  preserve 
its  history.  Some  of  its  most  prominent  memorials  are: 
Pawnee  Rock;  Pike  Memorial;  Santa  Fe  Trail  markers; 


KANSAS   MEMORIALS  209 

Pawnee  Capitol;  John  Brown's  battle-field;  monuments 
to  commemorate  the  battle  of  Osawatomie,  the  Marais 
des  Cygnes  massacre,  and  the  Quantrill  raid.  Many  other 
monuments  and  tablets  have  been  erected  in  different 
parts  of  the  State  to  commemorate  important  events. 
Memorial  Hall,  completed  in  1914,  was  built  in  honor  of 
the  soldiers  and  sailors  who  served  in  the  Civil  War. 
This  building  provides  fitting  quarters  for  the  Kansas 
Department  of  the  Grand  Army  of  the  Republic,  and  for 
the  State  Historical  Society  which  has  a  large  and  val- 
uable collection  of  original  historical  material. 

REFERENCES 

Blackmar,  Kansas,  Selected  Topics. 

Inman,  The  Old  Santa  Fe  Trail. 

Historical  Collections,  vol.  xi,  p.  253;  vol.  x,  pp.  15,  50,  472. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  How  long  since  Kansas  became  a  state  ? 

2.  What  places  of  historic  interest  are  there  in  the  State? 

3.  What  places  of  historic  interest  are  there  in  your  locality? 
Have  they  been  marked  in  any  way? 

4.  What  have  you  learned  from  the  old  settlers  about  the  his- 
tory of  your  locality? 

5.  Locate  Pawnee  Rock.     Give  its  early  history.     Its  recent 
history. 

6.  Give  an  account  of  Pike's  visit  to  the  Pawnee  Indians.    Where 
was  the  Indian  village?    How  has  this  event  been  commemorated? 

7.  Give  an  account  of  the  marking  of  the  Santa  Fe  Trail. 

8.  Locate  the  old  Pawnee  Capitol  and  give  its  history. 

9.  Name   as   many  other  memorials  as  you  can  and  give  the 
event  which  each  commemorate^ 

10.  What  is  Memorial  Hall?    Why  was  it  erected?    For  what  is 
it  to  be  used? 

11.  Explain  the  work  and  purpose  of  the  State  Historical  Society. 


-14 


"  This  is  but  the  dawn.  We  stand  in  the  vestibule 
of  the  temple.  The  achievements  of  the  past  will 
pale  into  insignificance  before  the  completed  glory 
of  the  century  to  come." 

— John  J.  Ingalls. 


CHAPTER  XIX 
THE  KANSAS  SPIRIT 

Kansas  is  a  great  State;  great  in  size  and  wealth,  great 
in  industries  and  resources,  and  great  in  what  it  has  accom- 
Introd    t!  plished.     But  there  are  states  that  are 

larger,  others  that  are  wealthier,  and 
many  that  have  larger  cities,  greater  population,  a  longer 
history,  and  more  splendid  memorials,  so  it  is  not  for 
these  things  that  Kansas  is  especially  noted  among  the 
states.  The  quality  that  is  the  mark  of  its  distinction 
is  the  character  of  its  history  and  of  its  people. 

Any  people  is,  in  large  part,  the  product  of  its  thinking, 
its  beliefs,  and  its  hopes  and  desires.  This  is  the  lesson  of 
Hawthorne's  story,  ''The  Great  Stone 
i'he'KTn8aL"fp?rit  Face."  Through  all  the  years  Ernest 
studied  the  face  on  the  mountain  and 
pondered  the  thoughts  that  he  read  there.  In  time  he 
came  to  resemble  the  great  face,  both  in  its  features  and 
in  the  character  it  expressed.  In  the  same  way  the  people 
of  Kansas  have  become  what  they  are  to-day  because  of 
their  thoughts,  their  experiences  and  their  ideals.  We 
often  hear  it  said  concerning  some  act  or  some  effort 
toward  progress,  "That  is  theJCansas spirit,'' which  means 
that  the  thing  done  shows  what  kind  of  people  the  Kan- 
sans  are;  it  is  characteristic  of  them.  If,  then,  we  would 
understand  what  this  Kansas  spirit  is,  we  must  know 
what  thoughts  and  experiences  and  ideals  have  had  a 
part  in  producing  it. 

Certain  characteristics  of  the  people  of  Kansas  are 

(211) 


212  A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 

largely  due  to  the  fact  that  this  was  so  recently  a  frontier 
state.  Pioneer  life,  wherever  it  exists, 
quaHtSs  develops  the   qualities  of  independence, 

courage,  resourcefulness,  endurance,  and 
democracy.  The  pioneer  has  only  himself  to  lean  on;  he 
learns  to  take  chances,  he  laughs  at  adversity,  he  adapts 
himself  to  circumstances,  and  he  lives  in  the  future. 

These  characteristics  are  not,  however,  peculiar  to  the 
Kansas  people,  for  the  early  settlers  of  other  states  lived 
Qualities  that  ^^  ^^^  frontier  and  developed  these  same 
make  the  qualities.     But  Kansas  had  a  Territorial 

Kansas  spirit  history  which  was  very  different  from  that 
of  any  other  state  and  which  has  left  its  impress  upon  the 
people.  Other  pioneers  have  had  the  great  task  of  making 
a  state  out  of  a  wilderness,  but  Kansas  pioneers  had  a 
second  great  task,  that  of  making  a  free  state  in  the  face 
of  the  most  determined  opposition.  They  came  to  Kansas 
as  the  Puritans  came  to  America,  in  the  name  of  liberty. 
They  were  stern,  unyielding,  purposeful  men  and  women, 
sure  of  the  presence  of  divine  leadership,  and  their  char- 
acter has  deeply  influenced  the  Kansas  people.  This  in- 
fluence has  made  them  hate  oppression;  it  has  made  them 
demand  justice  and  fair  play;  it  has  made  them  value 
people  for  their  personal  worth;  it  has  made  them  believe 
in  the  equality  of  human  rights,  and  in  the  ability  of  the 
people  to  govern  themselves.  These  are  characteristics 
of  every  true  Kansan  and  the  qualities  that  make  the 
Kansas  spirit. 

This  spirit  is  evident  in  many  phases  of  the  life  and 
progress  of  our  people,  but  it  is  nowhere  more  apparent 
Manifestations  ^^an  in  their  political  affairs  and  in  their 
of  the  Kansas  laws.  The  spirit  that  made  the  pioneers 
®P*"*  refuse  to  submit  to  the  *' Bogus  Legisla- 

ture" also  impelled  them  to  send  more  than  their  share 


THE   KANSAS   SPIRIT  213 

of  soldiers  to  the  Civil  War.  Later,  the  same  spirit  led 
the  Kansas  people  to  adopt  the  prohibition  amendment 
and  to  grant  to  women  the  full  right  of  suffrage.  It 
caused  the  farmers  and  other  laboring  people  to  form 
organizations  for  the  better  protection  of  their  rights. 
In  short,  the  Kansas  spirit  has  manifested  itself  when- 
ever the  people  have  made  an  effort  to  overcome  difficul- 
ties, whenever  they  have  tried  to  secure  more  justice  or 
liberty  for  themselves.  These  efforts  have  sometimes 
been  so  radical,  and  the  plans  offered  for  the  betterment 
of  conditions  so  new  and  startling  as  to  attract  much 
attention  in  the  rest  of  the  country.  But  Kansas  has 
continued  to  believe  in  the  worth  and  possibilities  of  her 
people  and  to  make  every  effort  to  bring  about  conditions 
that  will  give  them  the  opportunity  to  rise  to  the  full 
measure  of  their  nature. 

All  over  the  United  States  there  is  a  growing  tendency 
on  the  part  of  the  people  to  exercise  a  more  direct  control 
The  task  ^^  their  government;  to  take  more  and 

confronting  the  more  authority  into  their  own  hands. 
Kansas  of  to-day    r^j^j^  ^^^^  ^j^^^  ^^^  p^^pj^  ^^^  ^^  ^^^^_ 

ested,  active  and  well-informed.  For  us,  it  means  that 
the  quality  of  Kansas  government  depends  upon  the  qual- 
ity of  Kansas  citizenship.  While  the  task  of  the  pioneers 
was  a  heavy  one,  ours  to-day  is  no  less  great,  though  it  is 
different.  Their  struggle  was  to  get  the  soil  under  culti- 
vation, ours  to  see  that  it  does  not  become  worn  out;  theirs 
to  get  the  railroads,  ours  to  use  and  regulate  them;  theirs 
to  develop  new  industries,  ours  to  see  that  they  are  carried 
on  with  justice  to  all;  theirs  to  establish  schools,  ours  to 
make  them  more  efficient;  in  general,  theirs  to  build  up, 
ours  to  use  wisely. 

Kansas  history  is  not  made;  it  is  in  the  making.  We 
study  the  past  that  we  may  learn  how  to  make  the  present 


214  A   HISTORY   OF   KANSAS 

better.  Great  things  have  been  accomplished  but  there 
is  much  yet  to  be  done.  The  pioneers  solved  their  prob- 
lems, and  if  we  are  worthy  of  the  Kansas  they  have  given 
us  we  will  strive  to  solve  ours.  We  will  keep  alive  the 
Kansas  spirit. 

SUMMARY 

The  Kansas  people  have  developed  the  same  pioneer 
qualities  as  have  the  people  of  other  states;  but,  in  ad- 
dition, their  peculiar  Territorial  history  has  made  them 
believe  in  a  marked  degree  in  liberty,  justice,  equality, 
and  democracy.  These  characteristics  have  given  rise 
to  what  is  called  ''the  Kansas  spirit."  This  spirit  is 
especially  evident  in  the  political  movements  through 
which  the  people  have  taken  more  and  more  of  the  control 
of  government  into  their  own  hands. 

REFERENCES 

Kansas,  Carl  Becker. 

Historical  Collections.    Selected  Topics. 

Connelley,  History  as  an  Asset  of  the  State. 

QUESTIONS 

1.  In  what  things  is  Kansas  great?  Name  other  states  that  are 
greater  in  any  of  these  things.    What  quality  distinguishes  Kansas? 

2.  How  can  the  lesson  in  the  story  of  "The  Great  Stone  Face" 
be  applied  to  Kansas? 

3.  Why  does  pioneer  life  develop  courage?  Independence? 
Resourcefulness  ? 

4.  What  effect  has  the  Territorial  history  of  Kansas  had  on  the 
people? 

5.  What  is  meant  by  the  Kansas  spirit?  What  are  some  of  the 
ways  in  which  it  has  been  shown?    Discuss  each. 

6.  Discuss  the  responsibilities  of  the  Kansas  people  of  to-day. 


THE  APPENDIX 


TERRITORIAL  PERIOD 

Legislatures 
There  were  six  Territorial  legislatures.    The  first  two  were  pro- 
slavery.    Beginning  in  1868  the  four  that  followed  were  free-state. 

Constitations 

Four  constitutions  were  prepared;  the  Topeka  Constitution  in 
1855,  the  Lecompton  in  1857,  the  Leavenworth  in  1858,  and  the 
Wyandotte  in  1859.  The  Lecompton  was  the  only  one  that  provided 
for  slavery.  The  State  was  admitted  under  the  Wyandotte,  our 
present  constitution.  It  was  based  on  the  constitution  of  Ohio  and 
was  drafted  by  men  from  both  parties. 

Capitals 

Several  different  places  served  as  Territorial  capitals.  When 
Governor  Reeder  came  to  Kansas  he  kept  his  office  at  Leavenworth 
for  about  two  months,  then  removed  it  to  Shawnee  Mission,  which 
was  used  as  the  Territorial  capital  until  the  following  spring  when 
Governor  Reeder  named  Pawnee  as  the  capital.  The  Legislature 
remained  at  Pawnee  only  five  days  and  then  adjourned  to  Shawnee 
Mission,  where  the  Governor's  office  was  kept  another  year.  In 
August,  1855,  the  Territorial  Legislature  selected  Lecompton,  which 
continued  as  the  capital  during  the  remainder  of  the  Territorial 

EBriod.  However,  when  the  free-state  people  gained  control  of  the 
egislature  in  1858  they  made  an  effort  to  change  the  capital  to 
Minneola.  Failing  in  this,  they  met  at  Lecompton  for  each  session 
and  then  at  once  adjourned  to  Lawrence.  At  an  election  in  Novem- 
ber, 1861,  the  people  selected  Topeka  as  the  permanent  capital  of 
Kansas. 

The  Topeka  Movement 
The  free-state  Government  under  the  Topeka  Constitution  was 
organized  in  the  days  of  the  "Bogus  Legislature"  for  the  purpose  of 
uniting  the  free-state  people  and  enabling  them  to  oppose  pro- 
slavery  methods.  It  was  continued  until  the  free-state  people  gained 
control  of  the  Territorial  Legislature,  when  it  became  no  longer 
necessary  and  was  dropped.  The  principal  events  were  as  follows: 
The  convention  met  in  October  of  1855,  completed  the  Topeka 
Constitution  in  November,  and  the  free-state  people  voted  favor- 
ablv  on  it  in  December.  In  January  of  1856  they  elected  Charles 
Robinson  governor.  Their  Legislature  met  in  March,  and  in  the 
same  month  they  applied  for  admission  to  the  Union  but  the  bill 

(215) 


216  A   HISTORY   OF   KANSAS 

failed  to  pass.  The  Legislature  met  again  in  July,  but  was  disbanded 
by  United  States  troops  under  Sumner.  They  met  in  January  of 
1857,  but  the  officers  were  arrested.  Two  additional  meetings  were 
held;  one  in  January  and  one  in  March  of  1858.  Then,  having 
served  its  purpose,  the  Topeka  movement  was  at  an  end. 


APPENDIX  217 

INDIAN  MISSIONS  IN  EARLY  KANSAS 

Presbyterian    Missions 

Two  Presbyterian  missions  were  established  among  the  Osages 
in  what  is  now  Neosho  County  in  1824.  One  was  tne  Boudinot 
mission     The  work  was  in  charge  of  Rev.  Benton  Pixley. 

Rev.  S.  M.  Irwin  establisheof  a  mission  among  the  lowas,  Sacs 
and  Foxes  in  Doniphan  County,  near  the  present  town  of  Highland, 
in  1837.  Highland  College,  one  of  the  oldest  colleges  in  the  State, 
still  remains  as  a  school  of  this  church. 

Methodist  Missions 

In  1830  the  Shawnee  Methodist  mission  was  established  a  few 
miles  southwest  of  where  Kansas  City  now  stands.  This  mission 
was  in  charge  of  Rev.  Thomas  Johnson.  A  few  years  later  it  had 
a  manual-labor  school  and  a  farm  and  was  one  of  the  largest  and 
best  known  of  the  missions  in  Kansas. 

In  1832  a  mission  was  established  among  the  Delawarcs  in 
Wyandotte  County,  on  the  site  of  the  town  of  White  Church,  by 
William  Johnson  and  Thomas  B.  Markham.  Rev.  E.  T.  Peery 
was  in  charge. 

A  mission  for  the  Kickapoos  was  founded  in  1833.  It  was  just 
north  of  the  site  of  Leavenworth  and  was  in  charge  of  Rev.  J.  C. 
Berryman. 

In  1833  a  mission  was  established  for  the  Kanzas  at  Mission 
Creek,  Shawnee  County,  by  Rev.  William  Johnson,  who  continued 
the  work  for  seven  years.  When  the  Kanzas  were  moved,  the 
mission  was  located  at  Council  Grove.  It  existed  from  1850  to 
1854. 

Baptist  Missions 

The  Baptist  Church  established  a  mission  among  the  Shawnees 
in  1831.  It  was  about  two  miles  northwest  of  the  Shawnee  Methodist 
mission.  The  leader  was  Isaac  McCoy,  and  he  was  joined  later  by 
Dr.  Johnson  Lykins  and  Rev.  Jotham  Meeker.  Mr.  Meeker  was 
a  printer,  and  in  1834  issued  the  first  book  printed  in  Kansas,  a 
primer  in  the  Indian  language. 

A  mission  was  established  among  the  Ottawas  in  1837,  on  the 
present  site  of  Ottawa,  under  the  charge  of  Rev.  Jotham  Meeker. 
This  mission  survives  in  Ottawa  University. 

A  mission  was  opened  among  the  Pottawatomies  in  1837,  by 
Rev.  Robert  Simmerwell,  near  the  site  of  Osawatomie.  When  this 
tribe  moved  to  the  new  reservation  the  mission  was  situated  at 
Mission  Creek  in  Shawnee  County.    It  was  abandoned  in  1854. 

In  1840  Dr.  David  Lykins  established  a  mission  among  the 
Miamis,  about  ten  miles  southeast  of  the  present  city  of  Paola.  ^ 

Dr.  Johnson  Lykins  opened  a  mission  among  the  Delawares  in 
1832. 

Friends  Mission 

The  Society  of  Friends  established  a  mission  among  the  Shawnees 
in  1834,  about  three  miles  west  of  the  Methodist  mission.    Henry 


218  A   HISTORY   OF   KANSAS 

Harvey,  M.  Mendenhall,  and  the  Hadleys  were  teachers  in  this 
mission. 

Catholic  Missions 

In  1822  Father  La  Croix  visited  the  Osages,  just  across  the  line 
in  Missouri,  and  baptized  several  Indian  children.  At  different 
times  Father  Van  Quickenborn  visited  the  Osages  and  preached. 
In  1847  Rev.  Schoenmaker  established  the  Osage  Mission,  now  St. 
Paul,  in  Neosho  County. 

The  Catholic  mission  was  founded  in  1836  by  Fathers  Van 
Quickenborn  and  Hoeken  for  the  Kickapoos,  near  the  Junction  of 
Salt  Creek  with  the  Missouri,  in  Leavenworth  County. 

St.  Mary's  mission  among  the  Pottawatomies  was  established 
in  Miami  County  in  1838,  and  moved  to  Linn  County  in  1839, 
where  it  remained  until  the  removal  of  the  tribe  to  Pottawatomie 
County  in  1849.  The  mission  was  then  established  at  St.  Mary's, 
where  it  survives  to-day  in  St.  Mary's  school  for  boys. 


APPENDIX  219 


FORTS  IN  EARLY  KANSAS 


Many  forts  were  established  in  early  Kansas;  a  few  by  the 
fur  companies,  some  by  the  War  Department,  some  by  state  troops, 
a  number  by  settlers  as  a  place  of  refuge  from  the  Indians,  and  a 
few  by  free-state  and  proslavery  forces  during  theTerritorial  struggle. 
Some  of  them  consisted  merely  of  a  wall  of  earth  thrown  up,  others 
of  a  strongly  built  log  cabin  within  a  line  of  earthworks  or  line  of 

{)alisades.  Many  of  them  were  more  pretentious,  and  were  built  of 
ogs,  adobe,  or  stone.  Some  of  the  forts  established  by  the  National 
Government  cost  many  thousands  of  dollars  and  most  of  them  had 
large  land  reserves.  As  the  settlements  moved  westward  the  neces- 
sity for  the  forts  no  longer  existed,  and,  with  the  exception  of  Fort 
Leavenworth  and  Fort  Riley,  which  are  still  maintained  by  the 
National  Government  as  army  posts,  they  fell  into  disuse.  The 
principal  early  forts  were: 

Fort  Kanzas,  established  by  the  French  fur  traders  in  the  early 
part  of  the  eipjhteenth  century,  was  located  in  what  is  now  Atchison 
County.  It  IS  mentioned  in  the  journal  of  Lewis  and  Clark  as  an 
abandoned  fort. 

Fort  Lyon,  earlier  called  Bents*  Fort,  was  built  in  1826  for  a  fur- 
trading  post.  It  occupied  several  different  sites  on  the  Arkansas 
River,  all  of  them  within  the  present  bounds  of  Colorado,  the  last 
one  being  within  Territorial  Kansas.  It  was  opened  to  settlement 
in  1890. 

Fort  Leavenworth  was  established  in  1827  by  Col.  Henry  Leaven- 
worth of  the  United  States  armv.  It  has  from  its  beginning  been 
an  important  military  post.  More  than  $2,000,000  has  been  ex- 
pended on  it,  and  it  now  ranks  among  the  first  of  the  military  posts 
of  the  United  States. 

Fort  Riley  was  established  in  1852  by  the  United  States.  It  has 
been  enlarged  and  improved  from  time  to  time  until  it  is  now  an 
important  military  center.  Fort  Riley  is  near  the  iunction  of  the 
Republican  and  Smoky  Hill  rivers,  and  is  very  near  the  geographical 
center  of  the  United  States. 

Fort  Atkinson,  one  of  the  early  forts  erected  along  the  Santa  Fe 
Trail,  was  located  on  the  Arkansas  River  about  six  miles  above  the 
present  site  of  Dodge  City.  This  fort  was  built  in  1850  and  aban- 
doned in  1854.  It  was  known  for  a  few  months  as  Fort  Mackey, 
when  the  name  was  changed  to  Fort  Atkinson. 

Fort  Mann  was  probably  erected  about  1845  on  or  near  the  site 
on  which  Fort  Atkinson  was  later  built. 

Fort  Scott  was  built  in  1842  on  the  site  of  the  present  city  of  Fort 
Scott.  In  1853  it  ceased  to  be  used  as  a  military  post,  and  in  1855 
the  buildings  were  sold.    This  fort  had  no  reservation. 

Fort  Larned  was  located  in  1859  on  Pawnee  Fork,  about  eight 
miles  above  the  mouth  of  that  stream.  It  was  for  a  number  of  years 
an  important  post,  but  was  later  abandoned  as  a  fort,  and  in  1882 
the  reservation  was  opened  for  sale  to  settlers. 

Fort  Saunders  was  a  proslavery  stronghold  about  twelve  miles 


220  A   HISTORY   OF   KANSAS 

southwest  of  Lawrence  in  1856.  It  was  destroyed  by  a  body  of  free- 
state  settlers  the  same  year. 

Fort  Titus,  located  about  two  miles  south  of  Lecompton,  was  a 
log  house  used  as  a  proslavery  fortification.  It  was  captured  and 
destroyed  by  free-state  forces  shortly  after  the  destruction  of  Fort 
Saunders. 

Fort  Wakarusa  was  a  free-state  fortification  on  the  Wakarusa 
River,  about  five  miles  from  Lawrence. 

Fort  Bain  was  a  log  cabin  in  the  northern  part  of  Bourbon  County 
which  served  as  a  retreat  for  John  Brown  and  James  Montgomery  in 
1857  and  1858. 

Fort  Baxter,  a  military  post,  was  established  by  General  Blunt 
in  1863.  It  was  the  scene  of  an  attack  by  Quantrill,  known  as  the 
Baxter  Springs  massacre.  After  the  war  the  town  of  Baxter  Springs 
grew  up  on  the  site. 

Fort  Dodge  was  one  of  the  most  important  forts  on  the  western 
frontier.  It  was  located  on  the  site  of  The  Caches,  near  Dodge 
City,  in  1864.  The  first  buildings  were  of  adobe,  but  in  1867  good 
buildings  were  erected.  Fort  Dodge  was  not  abandoned  until  1882. 
The  Soldiers'  Home  at  Fort  Dodge  was  later  established  on  a  part 
of  this  military  reservation. 

Fort  Downer  was  located  on  Downer's  Creek,  about  fifty  miles 
west  of  Fort  Hays.    It  was  in  existence  between  1863  and  1868. 

Fort  Harker  was  established  in  18^64,  near  the  present  site  of 
Ellsworth,  with  the  name  Fort  Ellsworth.  Two  years  later  the  name 
was  changed  to  Fort  Harker  and  the  site  moved  about  a  mile  north- 
east. This  fort  was  for  a  long  time  the  shipping  point  for  freight 
bound  for  New  Mexico.  Fort  Harker  was  abandoned  in  1872  and 
the  reservation  opened  to  settlement  in  1880. 

Fort  Wallace  was  established  near  the  present  town  of  Wallace 
in  1865.  This  was  an  important  post  during  the  building  of  the 
Union  Pacific  railroad.  It  was  abandoned  as  a  fort  in  1882,  and  in 
1888  the  land  was  ordered  sold. 

Fort  Zarah  was  established  in  1864,  about  four  miles  east  of  the 
present  city  of  Great  Bend.  It  was  dismantled  in  1869,  and  the 
reservation  was  later  sold. 

Fort  Hays  was  established  by  the  National  Government,  in  1865, 
about  fourteen  miles  southeast  of  the  present  Hays  City,  and  was  for 
a  year  known  as  Fort  Fletcher.  In  1867  a  new  site,  about  three- 
fourths  mile  from  Hays  City,  was  selected.  The  reservation  con- 
sisted of  7500  acres.  General  Sheridan  used  Fort  Hays  for  head- 
quarters during  the  Black  Kettle  raid  in  1868.  It  continued  to  be 
used  as  a  military  post  until  1889.  In  1900  Kansas  secured  the  land 
and  buildings  for  educational  purposes.  The  Fort  Hays  Kansas 
Normal  School  and  an  experiment  station  for  the  Agricultural 
College  are  now  located  there. 

Fort  Henning,  Fort  Blair,  and  Fort  Insley  were  three  block- 
houses erected  at  Fort  Scott  in  1861  for  the  purpose  of  guarding 
military  stores  from  the  Confederate  forces. 


APPENDIX  221 

Fort  Lincoln  was  built  by  Lane  in  1861,  about  twelve  miles  north- 
west of  Fort  Scott,  for  protection  from  the  Confederate  forces.  It 
was  abandoned  in  1864. 

Fort  Aubrey  was  one  of  the  forts  established  in  1865  by  the 
soldiers  sent  to  quell  the  Indian  uprisings.  It  was  located  near  the 
present  village  of  Mayline  in  Hamilton  County.  It  was  abandoned 
the  following  year. 

Fort  Jewell  was  erected  in  1870  on  the  site  of  Jewell  City  for  the 
protection  of  the  settlers  against  the  Cheyennes  who  were  then  on  the 
warpath.  It  consisted  of  a  wall  of  earth  around  a  fifty-yard  square. 
After  the  Indian  troubles  were  over  Fort  Jewell  was  abandoned. 


222  A   HISTORY  OF  KANSAS 

SOME  PROMINENT  KANSANS 

Hundreds  of  Kansas  men  and  women  have  served  their  State 
in  a  way  worthy  of  note.  To  tell  the  story  of  the  services  rendered 
by  all  of  them  would  require  many  volumes.  In  a  book  like  the 
present  one,  mention  can  be  made  of  only  a  few  of  those  most  widely 
known.  In  addition  to  names  mentioned  in  the  body  of  the  text, 
the  following  are  a  few  of  the  names  of  Kansans,  no  longer  living, 
who  had  much  to  do  with  making  the  history  of  the  State: 

Preston  B.  Plumb  came  to  Kansas  to  make  his  home  in  1857. 
He  started  a  newspaper,  Kansas  News,  at  Emporia.  In  1861  he 
was  elected  to  the  State  House  of  Representatives.  The  same  year 
he  entered  the  Union  army  and  served  until  the  close  of  the  war. 
He  then  engaged  in  the  practice  of  law.  In  1876  he  was  elected  to 
the  United  States  Senate,  which  position  he  filled  until  his  death  in 
1891,  a  period  of  fourteen  years  of  continuous  service. 

William  A.  Harris  came  to  Kansas  in  1865,  at  the  close  of  four 
years  of  service  in  the  Confederate  army,  and  entered  the  employ 
of  the  Union  Pacific  Railroad  Company  as  a  civil  engineer.  Later 
he  became  a  well-known  farmer  and  stock  raiser.  In  1896  he  was 
elected  to  the  State  Senate,  and  in  1897  to  the  United  States  Senate. 
His  later  years  were  given  to  various  lines  of  agricultural  advance- 
ment. He  served  as  a  regent  of  the  State  Agricultural  College. 
His  death  occurred  in  1909. 

Samuel  A.  Kingman  came  to  Kansas  in  1857.  He  was  a  lawyer. 
He  served  as  a  member  of  the  Wyandotte  Constitutional  Conven- 
tion. He  was  associate  justice  of  the  Supreme  Court  of  Kansas,  1861 
to  1865,  and  chief  justice,  1867  to  1876,  when  he  resigned  because 
of  ill  health.    He  died  in  1904. 

David  J.  Brewer  came  to  Leavenworth  in  1859,  where  he  en- 
gaged in  the  practice  of  law.  He  served  continuously  in  various 
offices.  He  was  associate  justice  of  the  State  Supreme  Court  from 
1871  to  1884,  a  judge  of  the  United  States  Circuit  Court  from  1884 
to  1889,  and  in  1889  he  was  commissioned  Associate  Justice  of  the 
United  States  Supreme  Court,  which  position  he  filled  until  his 
death  in  1910. 

JopN  A.  Anderson  came  to  Junction  City  in  1858  as  pastor  of 
the  Presbyterian  church.  In  1873  he  was  made  president  of  the 
State  Agricultural  College.  He  reorganized  that  institution  and 
remained  at  its  head  until  1878,  when  he  was  elected  to  Congress 
where  he  served  until  1891.  He  was  appointed  consul-general  to 
Cairo,  Egypt,  in  1891.  He  died  on  his  way  back  home  in  the 
following  year. 

Francis  Huntington  Snow  was  elected  to  the  first  faculty  of 
the  University  of  Kansas  as  professor  of  mathematics  and  natural 
sciences,  in  1866.  In  1870  he  became  professor  of  natural  history  in 
the  University.  He  organized  the  collecting  expeditions  which  have 
resulted  in  the  extensive  natural  history  museums  of  the  University. 
He  was  made  Chancellor  of  the  University  in  1890,  from  which  posi- 
tion he  retired  in  1901.    He  died  in  1908. 


APPENDIX  223 

Edmund  G.  Ross  came  to  Kansas  in  1856.  He  was  a  member  of 
the  Wyandotte  Constitutional  Convention  and  served  in  the  Union 
army.  In  1866  he  was  appointed  to  fill  the  vacancy  in  the  United 
States  Senate  caused  by  the  death  of  James  H.  Lane.  He  cast  the 
deciding  vote  in  the  Senate  against  the  impeachment  of  President 
Johnson,  which  act  aroused  great  indignation.  He  engaged  in  news- 
paper work  until  1882,  when  he  went  to  New  Mexico  where  he 
served  as  Territorial  Governor  from  1885  to  1889.    He  died  in  1907. 

Mrs.  C.  I.  H.  Nichols,  a  writer  and  lecturer,  came  with  her 
family  to  Kansas  in  1854.  She  lived  first  at  Lawrence  and  then  at 
Wyandotte.  She  was  a  strong  advocate  of  a  more  just  understand- 
ing of  the  rights  of  women.  She  attended  the  meetings  of  the 
Wyandotte  Constitutional  Convention,  and  counseled  with  the 
members  on  all  matters  relating  to  women,  with  the  result  that 
the  Kansas  Constitution  was  one  of  the  most  liberal  in  the  United 
States  at  that  time.    Her  death  occurred  in  1885. 

Mrs.  Mary  A.  Bickerdyke,  generally  known  as  "  Mother  Bick- 
erdyke,"  served  as  a  nurse  during  the  Civil  War.  At  its  close  she 
came  to  Kansas  and  was  instrumental  in  assisting  soldiers  who 
were  left  without  employment  to  come  to  Kansas  and  take  home- 
steads. Through  her  efforts  aid  was  given  settlers  after  Indian 
raids,  and  she  assisted  in  securing  aid  for  Kansas  settlers  after  the 
grasshopper  invasion.  The  Mother  Bickerdyke  Home  for  soldiers* 
widows,  at  Ellsworth,  was  named  in  her  honor.  After  a  life  of 
great  activity  she  died  in  1901. 

Alfred  Gray  came  to  Kansas  in  1857.  With  the  exception  of 
his  period  of  service  in  the  Union  army  he  was  engaged  in  farming 
until  1873.  From  1866  until  1870  he  was  a  director  of  the  State 
Agricultural  Societv.  When  the  State  Board  of  Agriculture  was 
organized,  in  1872,  he  became  its  first  Secretary,  and  filled  the  posi- 
tion until  his  death  in  1880. 

Frederick  Wellhouse  came  to  Leavenworth  County,  Kansas, 
in  1859.  He  was  engaged  in  the  growing  and  sale  of  fruit  trees  until 
1876,  when  he  began  planting  commercial  apple  orchards.  During 
the  next  eighteen  years  he  planted  1637  acres  of  apple  trees.  Many 
years  were  given  to  experiments  to  determine  the  varieties  best 
adapted  to  Kansas.  He  became  known  throughout  the  country 
and  was  called  "The  Apple  King."  For  ten  years  he  was  president 
of  the  State  Horticultural  Society,  and  was  at  different  times  en- 
gaged in  many  public  activities.    He  died  in  1911. 

Franklin  G.  Adams  settled  on  a  farm  in  Leavenworth  County 
in  1856.  He  held  various  positions  of  public  service,  and  on  the 
organization  of  the  State  Historical  Society  in  1875  he  was  made  its 
Secretary,  which  position  he  held  until  his  death  in  1899.  He 
organized  and  developed  the  work  of  the  Society,  in  which  work 
he  was  materially  assisted  by  his  daughter,  Miss  Zu  Adams,  who 
continued  her  work  from  1880  until  her  death  in  1911. 

Mrs.  Sara  T.  D.  Robinson  came  to  the  Territory  in  1854  with  her 
husband.  Dr.  Charles  Robinson,  and  took  an  active  part  in  early 
Kansas  affairs.     She  wrote  Kansas — Its  Interior  and  Exterior  Life, 


224  A   HISTORY   OF   KANSAS 

the  most  notable  book  produced  by  a  Kansan  of  that  time.  It  had 
a  wide  circulation  and  a  great  influence.  Mrs.  Robinson  died  at  her 
home  near  Lawrence  in  1911. 

Noble  L.  Prentis  came  to  Kansas  in  1869  as  editor  of  the 
Topeka  Record.  From  that  time  until  his  death  in  1900  he  was  con- 
nected with  various  Kansas  newspapers:  the  Topeka  Commonwealth, 
the  Lawrence  Journal,  the  Junction  City  Union,  the  Atchison  Cham- 
pion, and  the  Kansas  City  Star.  He  wrote  five  books:  A  Kansan 
Abroad,  Southern  Letters,  Southwestern  Letters,  Kansas  Miscel- 
lanies, and  History  of  Kansas. 

Daniel  W.  Wilder,  who  first  came  to  Kansas  in  1857,  was  at 
different  times  the  editor  of  a  number  of  newspapers.  He  was  one 
of  the  founders  of  the  State  Historical  Society,  served  one  term  as 
state  auditor  and  two  terms  as  superintendent  of  insurance.  It  was 
as  a  newspaper  man  that  Mr.  Wilder's  influence  was  especially  felt. 
He  was  the  author  of  the  Annals  of  Kansas,  Life  of  Shakespeare,  and 
was  one  of  the  compilers  of  all  editions  of  Bartlett's  Familiar 
Quotations. 

Eugene  F.  Ware  came  to  Kansas  in  1867.  He  practiced  law, 
and  was  for  many  years  the  editor  of  the  Fort  Scott  Monitor.  He 
served  in  the  state  legislature,  and  from  1902  to  1905  was  United 
States  Pension  Commissioner.  He  died  in  1911.  It  is  as  a  writer 
that  Mr.  Ware  is  best  known.  His  Rhymes  of  Ironquill  is  his 
most  widely  read  work. 


APPENDIX  225 

KANSAS  WRITERS 

The  Kansas  struggle  was  the  source  of  a  great  deal  of  writing. 
Eastern  newspapers  were  full  of  the  Kansas  question.  During  the 
Territorial  period  many  of  the  eastern  papers  kept  correspondents 
in  the  Territory  and  these  men  wrote  much  of  the  conflict  here  and 
of  pioneer  life  and  conditions.  The  Kansas  people  themselves  were 
too  busy  to  give  much  attention  to  literature  and  produced  but  few 
writings  of  permanent  value.  Kansas — Its  Interior  and  Exterior 
Life,  by  Mrs.  Sara  T.  D.  Robinson,  was  written  during  this  period. 
Other  early  writers  were:  William  A.  Phillips,  Richard  Realf,  James 
Redpath,  Albert  D.  Richardson,  W.  P.  Tomlinson,  and  Henry 
Harvey. 

During  the  Civil  War  practically  all  of  the  writing  produced  in 
Kansas  was  concerned  with  the  struggle  that  the  people  were  going 
through.  The  period  from  the  close  of  the  Civil  War  until  the 
"grasshopper  year"  of  1874  was  one  of  remarkable  growth  and  ex- 
pansion and  the  people  were  full  of  confidence  and  enthusiasm.  It 
was  in  this  period  that  The  Kansas  Magazine  was  published. 
Though  it  lasted  less  than  two  years,  it  was  a  magazine  of  real  lit- 
erature. Among  the  contributors  were:  Henry  King,  James  W. 
Steele,  John  J.  Ingalls,  D.  W.  Wilder,  R.  J.  Hinton,  Charles  Robin- 
son, and  Noble  L.  Prentis. 

The  depression  caused  by  the  grasshopper  raid  affected  Kansas 
in  literature  as  well  as  in  other  activities.  For  several  vears  but  few 
books  were  published.  Two  of  the  books  produced  during  this 
period  were,  however,  very  valuable  ones:  Andreas'  History  of 
Kansas,  a  compilation  by  many  writers,  and  Wilder's  Annals  of 
Kansas.  George  R.  Peck  and  John  J.  Ingalls  came  into  promi- 
nence about  this  time  as  orators.  Many  of  their  speeches  have 
become  a  part  of  our  literature.  Joseph  G.  McCoy  and  Joel  Moody 
were  writers  of  this  period. 

A  number  of  good  books  were  published  in  the  '80's,  among  them: 
The  Story  of  a  Country  Town,  E.  W.  Howe;  A  Kansan  Abroad, 
Noble  L.  Prentis;  Rhymes  of  Ironquill,  Eugene  F.  Ware; 
History  of  Kansas,  L.  W.  Spring;  Anabel  and  Other  Poems,  Ellen 
P.  Allerton.  Other  writers  of  this  time  were:  F.  W.  Giles,  Charles 
Gleed,  and  Hattie  Horner. 

The  period  following  the  collapse  of  the  boom,  1888  to  1892,  pro- 
duced many  books.  Some  of  the  most  prominent  were:  Kansas 
Miscellanies,  Prentis;  The  Farmers'  Side,  William  A.  Peffer;  Let- 
ters, Charles  F.  Scott;  In  the  Van  of  Empire,  Henry  Inman;  Richard 
Bruce,  Charles  M.  Sheldon;  Old  Wine  in  New  Bottles,  Brinton  W. 
Woodward.  During  this  period  The  Agora,  a  Kansas  magazine, 
was  published.  All  the  best  Kansas  writers  of  the  period  were  among 
its  contributors,  but  it  lived  only  a  short  time.  Among  other  writers 
were:  Nathaniel  S.  Goss,  Mrs.  Mary  W.  Hudson,  Gov.  Charles 
Robinson,  and  John  Speer. 

The  last  twenty  years  have  brought  peace  and  prosperity  to 
Kansas  and  the  people  have  been  able  to  give  more  time  and 


226  A  HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 

thought  to  literature.  Many  writings  have  been  produced — 
poetry,  essays,  speeches,  newspaper  and  magazine  articles,  and 
many  books.  The  following  are  among  the  writers  who  have  come 
into  prominence  in  the  last  two  decades: 

Henry  Inman,  author  of:  The  Old  Santa  Fe  Trail,  The  Great 
Salt  Lake  Trail,  The  Ranch  on  the  Oxhide,  and  The  Delahoyd 
Boys. 

Charles  M.  Sheldon,  author  of:  Richard  Bruce,  Robert  Hardy's 
Seven  Days,  The  Crucifixion  of  Philip  Strong,  His  Brother's  Keeper, 
In  His  Steps,  Malcolm  Kirk,  Lend  a  Hand,  The  Redemption  of 
Freetown,  The  Miracle  at  Markham,  One  of  the  Two,  For  Christ 
and  the  Church,  Born  to  Serve,  Who  Killed  Joe's  Baby,  The  Re- 
former, The  Narrow  Gate,  The  Heart  of  the  World,  Paul  Doug- 
las, The  Good  Fight,  The  High  Calling. 

William  Allen  White,  author  of:  The  Real  Issue,  Court  of 
Boyville,  In  Our  Town,  A  Certain  Rich  Man,  and  numerous  news- 
paper and  magazine  articles. 

Eugene  Ware,  author  of:  The  Rise  and  Fall  of  the  Saloon, 
The  Lyon  Campaign  and  History  of  the  First  Iowa  Infantry,  The 
Indian  Campaign  of  1864,  Rhymes  of  Ironquill,  Ithuriel,  From 
Court  to  Court,  Several  translations  from  Spanish,  French  and 
Latin,  contributions  to  many  publications. 

William  Y.  Morgan,  author  of:  A  Jayhawker  in  Europe,  The 
journey  of  a  Jayhawker,  A  Jayhawker  in  the  Near  East,  and 
numerous  newspaper  articles. 

Margaret  Hill  McCarter,  author  of:  The  Cottonwood's  Story, 
Cuddy's  Baby,  In  Old  Quivira,  The  Price  of  the  Prairie,  The  Peace 
of  the  Solomon  Valley,  A  Wall  of  Men,  The  Master's  Degree,  Win- 
ning the  Wilderness. 

Walt  Mason,  author  of:  Rhymes  of  the  Range,  Uncle  Walt, 
Prose  Poems,  and  newspaper  and  magazine  writings. 

William  Elsey  Connelley,  author  of:  John  Brown,  James  H. 
Lane,  Wyandot  Folk-Lore,  An  Appeal  to  the  Record,  Kansas  Ter- 
ritorial Governors,  Memoirs  of  John  James  Ingalls,  Ingalls  of  Kan- 
sas, Quantrill  and  the  Border  Wars,  and  Life  of  Preston  B.  Plumb. 

Samuel  J.  Crawford,  author  of  Kansas  in  the  Sixties. 

William  Herbert  Carruth,  author  of  Each  in  His  Own  Tongue 
and  Other  Poems. 

Among  other  present-day  Kansas  writers  are:  E.  W.  Howe 
F.  W.  Blackmar,  Mrs.  Louisa  Cooke  Don  Carlos,  Effie  Graham 
W.  A.  McKeever,  Mrs.  Dell  H.  Munger,  Mrs.  Kate  A.  Aplington 
Esther  M.  Clark,  F.  Dumont  Smith,  Charles  M.  Harger. 


APPENDIX  227 

TERRITORIAL  OFFICERS  OF  KANSAS 

The  Governors  were  appointed  for  terms  of  four  years,  but  none 
of  them  served  a  full  term.  Ten  different  men  filled  the  office  during 
the  Territorial  period  of  six  years  and  eight  months.  There  were 
six  Governors  and  five  Acting  Governors,  James  W.  Denver  serving 
in  both  capacities.  During  the  absence  of  a  Governor  or  when  there 
was  a  vacancy  in  that  office  the  duties  of  the  Governor  fell  upon  the 
Secretary  of  the  Territory  and  he  was  called  the  Acting  Governor. 

Governors  Acting  Governors  Terms  served 

Andrew  H.  Reeder July  7,  1854,  to  August 

16,  1855. 

Daniel  Woodson August  16,  1855,  to 

September  7,  1855. 

Wilson  Shannon September  7,  1855,  to 

August  18,  1856. 

Daniel  Woodson August  18,  1856,  to 

September  9,  1856. 

John  W.  Geary September  9,  1856,  to 

March  12,  1857. 

Daniel  Woodson March  12,  1857,  to 

April  16,  1857. 
Frederick  P.  Stanton.  .April  16,  1857,  to  May 

27,  1857. 

Robert  J.  Walker May  27,  1857,  to 

November  16,  1857. 
Frederick  P.  Stanton .  .November  16,  1857,  to 

December  21,  1857. 
James  W.  Denver.  ,  .  .December  21,  1857,  to 
May  12,  1858. 

James  W.  Denver May  12,  1858,  to 

October  10,  1858. 

Hugh  S.  Walsh October  10,  1858,  to 

December  18,  1858. 

Samuel  Medary December  18,  1858,  to 

December  17,  1860. 

Hugh  S.  Walsh August  1,  1859,  to 

September  15,  1859. 

Hugh  S.  Walsh April  15,  1860,  to  June 

16,  1860. 

George  M.  Beebe September  11,  1860,  to 

November  25,  1860. 

Auditors  «, 

John  Donaldson 1855-1857 

Hiram  Jackson  Strickler 1857-1861 


228  A   HISTORY   OF   KANSAS 

Treasurers 

Thomas  J.  B.  Cramer 1855-1859 

Robert  B.  Mitchell 1859-1861 

Attorneys-  General 

Andrew  Jackson  Isacks 1854-1857 

William  Weer 1857-1858 

Alson  C.  Davis 1858-1861 

Superintendents  of  Schools 

James  H.  Noteware 1858 

Samuel  Wiley  Greer 1858-1861 

John  C.  Douglass 1861 

Territorial  Chief  Justices 

Samuel  Dexter  Lecompte 1854-1859 

John  Pettit 1859-1861 

Associate  Justices 

Saunders  W.  Johnston 1854-1855 

J.  M.  Burrell 1855-1856 

Thomas  Cunningham 1856-1857 

Joseph  Williams 1857-1861 

Rush  Elmore 1854-1855 

Sterling  G.  Cato 1855-1858 

Rush  Elmore .• 1858-1861 


APPENDIX  229 

STATE  OFFICERS  OF  KANSAS 

Governors 

Charles  Robinson 1861-1863 

Thomas  Carney 1863-1865 

Samuel  J.  Crawford 1865-1868 

Resigned  November  4,  1868. 

Nehemiah  Green,  Acting  Governor 1868-1869 

James  M.  Harvey 1869-1873 

Thomas  A.  Osborn 1873-1877 

George  T.  Anthonv 1877-1879 

John  P.  St.  John 1879-1883 

George  W.  Click 1883-1885 

John  A.  Martin 1885-1889 

Lyman  U.  Humphrey 1889-1893 

Lorenzo  D.  Lewelling 1893-1895 

Edmund  N.  Morrill 1895-1897 

John  W.  Leedy 1897-1899 

William  E.  Stanley 1899-1903 

Willis  Joshua  Bailey 1903-1905 

Edward  W.  Hoch 1905-1909 

Walter  Roscoe  Stubbs 1909-1913 

George  H.  Hodges 1913-1915 

Arthur  Capper 1915 

Lieutenant"  Governors 

Joseph  P.  Root 1861-1863 

Thomas  A.  Osborn 1863-1865 

James  McGrew 1865-1867 

Nehemiah  Green 1867-1868 

Charles  V.  Eskridge 1869-1871 

Peter  P.  Elder 1871-1873 

Elias  S.  Stover 1873-1875 

MelvUle  J.  Salter 1875-1877 

Resigned  July  19,  1877. 

Lyman  U.  Humphrey,  elected  November  6 1877 

Lyman  U.  Humphrey 1879-1881 

D.  W.  Finney 1881-1885 

Alex.  P.  Riddle 1885-1889 

Andrew  J.  Felt 1889-1893 

Percy  Daniels 1893-1895 

James  A.  Troutman 1895-1897 

A.  M.  Harvey 1897-1899 

H.  E.  Richter 1899-1903 

David  J.  Hanna 1903-1907 

W.  J.  Fitzgerald 1907-1911 

Richard  J.  Hopkins 1911-1913 

Sheffield  Ingalls 1913-1915 

William  Yost  Morgan 1915 


230  A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 

Secretaries  of  State 

John  Winter  Robinson 1861-1862 

Removed  July  28,  1862. 

Sanders  Rufus  Shepherd,  appointed 1862-1863 

William  Wirt  Henry  Lawrence 1863-1865 

Rinaldo  Allen  Barker 1865-1869 

Thomas  Moonlight 1869-1871 

William  Hillary  Smallwood 1871-1875 

Thomas  H.  Cavanaugh 1875-1879 

James  Smith 1879-1885 

Edwin  Bird  Allen 1885-1889 

William  Higgins 1889-1893 

Russel  Scott  Osborn 1893-1895 

William  Congdon  Edwards 1895-1897 

William  Eben  Bush 1897-1899 

George  Alfred  Clark 1899-1903 

Joel  Randall  Burrow 1903-1907 

C.  E.  Denton 1907-1911 

Charles  H.  Sessions 1911-1915 

John  Thomas  Botkin 1915 

Auditors 

George  Shaler  Hillyer 1861-1862 

Removed  July  28,  1862. 

David  Long  Lakin,  appointed 1862-1863 

Asa  Hairgrove 1863-1865 

John  R.  Swallow 1865-1869 

Alois  Thoman 1869-1873 

Daniel  Webster  Wilder 1873-1876 

Resigned  September  20,  1876. 

Parkinson  Isaiah  Bonebrake,  appointed 1876 

Parkinson  Isaiah  Bonebrake 1877-1883 

Edward  P.  McCabe 1883-1887 

Timothy  McCarthy 1887-1891 

Charles  Merrill  Hovey 1891-1893 

Van  B.  Prather 1893-1895 

George  Ezekiel  Cole 1895-1897 

William  H.  Morris 1897-1899 

George  Ezekiel  Cole 1899-1903 

Seth  Grant  Wells 1903-1907 

J.  M.  Nation 1907-1911 

W.  E.  Davis 1911 

Treasurers 
William  Tholen,  elected  in  1859. 

Entered  the  army  and  did  not  qualify. 

Hartwin  R.  Dutton,  appointed  March  26 1861 

Hartwin  R.  Dutton,  elected 1861-1863 

William  Spriggs 1863-1867 

Martin  Anderson 1867-1869 

George  Graham 1869-1871 

Josiah  Emery  Hayes 1871-1874 

Resigned  April  30,  1874. 

John  Francis,  appointed 1874-1875 


APPENDIX  231 

Treasurers  —concluded 

Samuel  Lappin 1875 

Resigned  December  20,  1875. 

John  Francis,  appointed 1875 

John  Francis 1877-1883 

Samuel  T.  Howe 1883-1887 

James  William  Hamilton 1887-1890 

Resigned  March  1,  1890. 

William  Sims,  appointed 1890-1891 

Solomon  G.  Stover 1891-1893 

William  Henry  Biddle 1893-1895 

Otis  L.  Atherton 1895-1897 

David  H.  Heflebower 1897-1899 

Frank  E.  Grimes .* 1899-1903 

Thomas  T.  Kelly 1903-1907 

Mark  Tully 1907-1913 

Earl  Akers 1913 

Attorneys- General 
Benjamin  Franklin  Simpson 1861 

Resigned  Julv,  1861. 

Charles  Chadwick,  appointed 1861 

Samuel  A.  Stinson 1861-1863 

Warren  W.  Guthrie 1863-1865 

Jerome  D.  Brumbaugh 1865-1867 

George  Henry  Hoyt 1867-1869 

Addison  Danford 1869-1871 

Archibald  L.  Williams 1871-1875 

Asa  M.  F.  Randolph 1875-1877 

Willard  Davis 1877-1881 

William  A.  Johnston 1881-1884 

Resigned  December  1,  1884. 

George  P.  Smith,  appointed 1884-1885 

Simeon  Briggs  Bradford 1885-1889 

Lyman  Beecher  Kellogg 1889-1891 

John  Nutt  Ives 1891-1893 

John  Thomas  Little 1893-1895 

Fernando  B.  Dawes 1895-1897 

Louis  C.  Boyle 1897-1899 

Aretas  A.  Godard 1899-1903 

Charles  Crittenden  Coleman 1903-1907 

F.  S.  Jackson 1907-1911 

John  S.  Dawson 1911-1915 

Sardies  Mason  Brewster 1915 

Superintendents  of  Public  Instruction 

William  Riley  Griffith 1861-1862 

Died  February  12,  1862. 

Simeon  Montgomery  Thorp,  appointed 1862-1863 

Isaac  T.  Goodnow 1863-1867 

Peter  McVicar 1867-1871 

Hugh  De  France  McCarty 1871-1875 


232  A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 

Superintendents  of  Public  Instruction — concluded 

John  Fraser 1875-1877 

Allen  Borsley  Lemmon 1877-1881 

Henry  Clay  Speer 1881-1885 

Joseph  Hadden  Lawhead 1885-1889 

George  Wesley  Winans 1889-1893 

Henry  Newton  Gaines 1893-1895 

Edmund  Stanley 1895-1897 

William  Stryker 1897-1899 

Frank  Nelson 1899-1903 

Insley  L.  Dayhofif 1903-1907 

E.  T.  Fairchild 1907-1912 

Resigned  November  19,  1912. 

W.  D.  Ross,  appointed 1912 

W.  D.  Ross 1913 

Chief  Justices 

Thomas  Ewing,  Jr 1861-1862 

Resigned  November  28,  1862. 

Nelson  Cobb,  appointed 1862-1864 

Robert  Crozier 1864-1867 

Samuel  Austin  Kingman 1867-1876 

Resigned  December  30,  1876. 

Albert  Howell  Horton,  appointed 1876 

Albert  Howell  Horton 1877-1895 

Resigned  April  30,  1895. 

David  Martin,  appointed 1895 

David  Martin 1895-1897 

Frank  Doster 1897-1903 

William  Agnew  Johnston 1903 

State  Printers 

S.  S.  Prouty 1869-1873 

George  W.  Martin 1873-1881 

T.  Dwight  Thatcher 1881-1887 

Clifford  C.  Baker 1887-1891 

E.  H.  Snow 1891-1895 

J.  K.  Hudson 1895-1897 

J.  S.  Parks 1897-1899 

W.  Y.  Morgan 1899-1903 

George  A.  Clark 1903-1905 

T.  A.  McNeal 1905-1911 

W.  C.  Austin 1911-1915 

William  R.  Smith 1915 

Superintendents  of  Insurance 

Webb  McNall 1897-1901 

W.  V.  Church 1901-1903 

Charles  H.  Luling 1903-1907 

Charles  W.  Barnes 1907-1911 

Ike  S.  Lewis 1911-1915 

Carey  J.  Wilson 1915 


APPENDIX  233 

United  States  Senators 

James  H.  Lane 1861-1866 

Died  July  11,  1866. 

Edmund  G.  Ross,  appointed 1866 

Edmund  G.  Ross 1867-1871 

Alexander  Caldwell 1871-1873 

Resigned  March  24,  1873. 

Robert  Crozier,  appointed 1873-1874 

James  M.  Harvey,  elected 1874-1877 

Preston  B.  Plumb 1877-1891 

Died  December  20,  1891. 

Bishop  W.  Perkins,  appointed 1892-1893 

John  Martin,  elected  January  25 1893-1895 

Lucien  Baker 1895-1901 

Joseph  Ralph  Burton 1901-1906 

Resigned,  1906. 

A.  W.  Benson,  appointed 1906-1907 

Charles  Curtis 1907-1913 

William  H.  Thompson 1913 

Samuel  C.  Pomeroy 1861-1873 

John  James  Ingalls 1873-1891 

William  Alfred  PeflFer 1891-1897 

William  A.  Harris 1897-1903 

Chester  I.  Long 1903-1909 

J.  L.  Bristow 1909-1915 

Charles  Curtis 1915 

Congressmen 

Martin  F.  Conway 1861-1863 

Abel  Carter  WUder 1863-1865 

Sidney  Clarke 1865-1871 

David  P.  Lowe 1871-1875 

Stephen  Alonzo  Cobb 1873-1875 

William  Addison  Phillips 1873-1879 

William  R.  Brown 1875-1877 

John  R.  Goodin 1875-1877 

Dudley  C.  Haskell 1877-1883 

Thomas  Ryan 1877-1889 

John  Alexander  Anderson 1879-1891 

Edmund  N.  Morrill 1883-1891 

Samuel  Ritter  Peters 1883-1891 

Lewis  Hanback 1883-1887 

Bishop  W.  Perkins 1883-1891 

Edward  Hogue  Funston 1883-1893 

Erastus  J.  Turner 1887-1891 

Harrison  Kelley 1889-1891 

Case  Broderick 1891-1899 

B.  H.  Clover 1891-1893 

John  Davis 1891-1895 

T         o-  ^ 1891-1895 

Jerry  Simpson j  1897-1899 

John  Grant  Otis 1891-1893 


234  A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 

C  ONGRESSMEN — concluded 

William  Baker 1891-1897 

William  Alexander  Harris 1893-1895 

Horace  L.  Moore 1893-1895 

Charles  Curtis 1893-1907 

Thomas  J.  Hudson 1893-1895 

Richard  W.  Blue 1895-1897 

Orrin  L.  Miller 1895-1897 

Snyder  S.  Kirkpatrick 1895-1897 

Chester  I.  Long \lllt\lol 

William  A.  Calderhead j  igggligii 

Jeremiah  Dunham  Botkin 1897-1899 

Mason  Summers  Peters 1897-1899 

N.  B.  McCormick 1897-1899 

Edwin  Reed  Ridgely 1897-1901 

William  D.  Vincent 1897-1899 

Willis  Joshua  Bailey 1899-1901 

Justin  DeWitt  Bowersock 1899-1907 

James  Monroe  Miller 1899-1911 

William  Augustus  Reeder 1899-1911 

Charles  Frederick  Scott 1901-1911 

Alfred  Metcalf  Jackson 1901-1903 

Philip  Pitt  Campbell 1903 

Victor  Murdock 1903-1915 

D.  R.  Anthony 1907 

*E.  H.  Madison 1907-1911 

fA.  C.  Mitchell 1911-1911 

Fred  S.  Jackson 1911-1913 

R.  R.  Rees 1911-1913 

I.  D.  Young ; 1911-1913 

Joseph  Taggart 1911 

Dudley  Doolittle 1913 

Guy  T.  Helvering 1913 

John  R.  Connelly 1913 

George  A.  Neeley 1912-1915 

Jouett  Shouse 1915 

William  A.  Ayers 1915 

*Died,  Sept.  18,  1911. 
t  Died,  July  7,  1911. 


APPENDIX  235 

INSTITUTIONS  IN  KANSAS 
State  Schools 

University  of  Kansas Lawrence. 

State  Agricultural  College Manhattan. 

State  Normal  School Emporia. 

Fort  Hays  Kansas  Normal  School Hays. 

State  Manual  Training  Normal  School Pittsburg. 

State  School  of  Mines  and  Metallurgy Weir. 

Kansas  School  for  the  Blind Kansas  City. 

Kansas  School  for  the  Deaf Olathe. 

Denominational  Schools 

Baker  University,  Methodist  Episcopal Baldwin. 

Bethany  College,  Swedish  Lutheran Lindsborg. 

Bethany  College,  Episcopalian Topeka. 

Bethel  College,  Mennonite Newton. 

Campbell  University Holton. 

College  of  Emporia,  Presbyterian Emporia. 

College  Preparatory  School  (Private) Atchison. 

Cooper  College,  United  Presbyterian Sterling. 

Enterprise  Normal  Academy,  German  M.  E Enterprise. 

Fairmount  College,  Congregational . . .  *. Wichita. 

Fowler  Friends  Academy,  Friends Fowler. 

Friends  University,  Friends Wichita. 

Highland  University,  Presbyterian Highland. 

Haviland  Academy,  Friends Haviland. 

Kansas  City  University,  United  Brethren Kansas  City. 

Kansas  Wesleyan  University,  Methodist  Episcopal Salina. 

McPherson  College,  Church  of  the  Brethren McPherson. 

Midland  College,  Lutheran Atchison. 

Mt.  St.  Scholastica's  Academy,  Catholic Atchison. 

Nazareth  Academy,  Catholic Concordia. 

Northbranch  Academy,  Friends Northbranch. 

Ottawa  University,  Baptist Ottawa. 

Southern  Kansas  Academy,  Congregational Eureka. 

Southwestern  College,  Methodist  Episcopal Winfield. 

St.  Benedict's  College,  Catholic Atchison. 

St.  John's  Lutheran  College,  Lutheran Winfield. 

St.  Martin's  School,  Episcopalian Salina. 

St.  Mary's  Academy,  Catholic Leavenworth. 

St.  Mary's  Academy,  Catholic Great  Bend. 

St.  Mary's  College,  Catholic St.  Marys. 

Walden  College,  Evangelical McPherson. 

Washburn  College,  Congregational Topeka. 

State  Penal  or  Corrective  Institutions 

State  Industrial  Reformatory Hutchinson. 

State  Industrial  School  for  Giris Beloit. 

State  Industrial  School  for  Boys Topeka. 

State  Penitentiary Lansing. 


236  A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 

State  Benevolent  Institutions 

State  School  for  the  Feeble-minded Winfield. 

State  Hospital  for  the  Insane Topeka. 

State  Hospital  for  the  Insane Osawatomie. 

State  Hospital  for  the  Insane Larned. 

State  Hospital  for  Epileptics Parsons. 

State  Hospital  for  Tuberculosis Norton. 

Special  Institutions 

State  Soldiers'  Home Fort  Dodge. 

Mother  Bickerdyke  Home Ellsworth. 

Soldiers'  Orphans'  Home Atchison. 

State  Colored  Schools 

Topeka  Industrial  and  Educational  Institute Topeka. 

Western  University Quindaro. 

Federal  Institutions 

Haskell  Institute,  Indian Lawrence. 

Pottawatomie  Boarding  School  for  Indians Nadeau. 

Federal  Prison Leavenworth. 

National  Soldiers'  Home Leavenworth. 


APPENDIX 


237 


Balance  of  Power  in  the  United  States  Senate  Between 
the  Free  and  the  Slave  States 


Free, 
Pennsylvania. 
New  Jersey. 
Connecticut. 
Massachusetts. 
New  Hampshire. 
New  York. 
Rhode  Island. 


Vermont,  1791. 
Ohio,  1802. 
Indiana,  1816. 
Illinois,  1818. 


11 
Maine,  1820. 


12 

Michigan,  1837. 
Iowa,  1846. 
Wisconsin,  1848. 


15 
California,  1850. 


16 

Minnesota,  1858. 
Oregon,  1859. 
Kansas,  1861. 


Slave. 
Delaware. 
Georgia. 
Maryland. 
South  Carolina. 
Virginia. 
North  Carolina. 


11 

Missouri,  1821. 
Arkansas.  1836. 


13 

Florida.  1845. 
Texas,  1845. 


15 


15 


19 


15 


The  original  thirteen 
states. 


6 

Kentucky,  1792. 
Tennessee,  1796. 
Louisiana,  1812. 
Mississippi,  1817. 
Alabama,  1819. 


Tl>e  Missouri  Com- 
promise, 1820. 


First  slave  state 

majority. 

Last  slave  state. 


Compromise  of  1850. 

Kansas-Nebraska 
Bill,  1864.  The  last 
chance  for  the  South  to 
win. 


Secession  and  the  Civil 
War. 


238  A   HISTORY   OF   KANSAS 

ORGANIZATION  OF  THE  COUNTIES  OF  KANSAS 
Counties  Organized  Before  1860 

County.  Dale  of  Organization.  County  Seat. 

Allen 1855 lola. 

Anderson 1855 Garnett. 

Atchison 1855 Atchison. 

Bourbon 1855 Fort  Scott. 

Brown 1855 Hiawatha. 

Butler 1855 El  Dorado. 

Chase 1859 Cottonwood  Falls. 

Coffey 1859 Burlington. 

Dickinson 1857 Abilene. 

Doniphan 1855 Troy. 

Douglas 1855 Lawrence. 

Franklin 1855 Ottawa. 

Geary^ 1855 Junction  City. 

Jackson2 1857 Holton. 

Jefferson 1855 Oskaloosa. 

Johnson 1855 Olathe. 

Leavenworth 1855 Leavenworth. 

Linn 1855 Mound  City. 

Marshall 1855 Marysville. 

Miami3 1855 Paola. 

Morris* 1855 Council  Grove. 

Nemaha 1855 Seneca. 

Osage^ 1855 Lyndon. 

Pottawatomie 1856 Westmoreland. 

Riley 1855 Manhattan. 

Saline 1859 Salina. 

Shawnee 1855 Topeka. 

Wabaunsee** 1859 Alma. 

Woodson 1855 Yates  Center. 

Wyandotte 1855 Kansas  City. 


1.  Named  Davis  until  1889. 

2.  Named  Calhoun  until  1859. 

3.  Named  Lykins  until  1861. 

4.  Named  Wise  until  1859. 

5.  Named  Weller  until  1859. 

6.  Named  Richardson  before  1859. 


APPENDIX  239 

Counties  Organized  1860-1870 

CoMify.  Dale  of  Organization.  County  Seat. 

Cherokee 1866 Columbus. 

Clay 1866  Clay  Center. 

Cloudi 1860 Concordia. 

Crawford 1867 Girard. 

Ellis 1867 Hays. 

Ellsworth 1867 Ellsworth. 

Greenwood 1862 Eureka. 

Labette- 1867 Oswego. 

Lvon^ 1860 Emporia. 

Marion 1860 Marion. 

Montgomery 1869 Independence. 

Neosho* 1864 Erie. 

Ottawa 1866 Minneapolis. 

Republic 1868 Belleville. 

Washington 1860 Washington. 

Wilson 1865 Fredonia. 


1.  Th»  original  name.  Shirley,  changed  to  Cloud  in  1867. 

2.  Part  of  Dom  County  until  1861.   Named  NeoBbo  until  1867. 
S.  Named  Breckinridice  until  1862. 

4.  Nanwd  Dora  uatU  1861. 


240  A   HISTORY   OF   KANSAS 

Counties  Organized  1870-1880 

County .  Date  of  Organization.  County  Seat . 

Barber 1873 Medicine  Lodge- 

Barton 1872 Great  Bend. 

Chautauqua 1875 Sedan- 

Cowleyi 1870 Winfield- 

Decatur 1879 Oberlin- 

Edwards 1874 Kinsley. 

Elk'-' 1875 Howard. 

Ford 1873 Dodge  City. 

Harper* 1878 Anthony. 

Harvey 1872 Newton- 

Hodgeman 1879 Jetmore- 

Jewell ;  .  1870 Mankato- 

Kingman 1874 Kingman- 
Lincoln  1870 Lincoln- 

McPherson 1870 McPherson- 

Mitchell 1870 Beloit- 

Norton 1872 Norton- 
Osborne.  1871 Osborne- 
Pawnee  1872 Larned- 

Phillips 1872 Phillipsburg- 

Pratt* 1879 Pratt. 

Reno 1872 Hutchinson. 

Rice 1871 Lyons- 
Rooks 1872 Stockton. 

Rush 1874 La  Crosse. 

Russell 1872 Russell- 
Sedgwick 1870 Wichita. 

Smith 1872 : Smith  Center. 

Stafford 1879 St.  John. 

Sumner 1871 Wellington. 

Trego 1879 Wa  Keeney. 

1.  Originally  named  Hunter. 

2.  Originally  the  northern  portion  of  Howard  county. 

*    First  organization  in  1873,  later  set  aside  as  fraudulent. 


APPENDIX  241 

Counties  Organized  1880-1890 

Ctnadt.  Dait'of  Organization.  County  Seat. 

Cheyenne 1886 St.  Francis. 

Clark 1885 Ashland. 

Comanche* 1885 Coldwater. 

Finney» 1884 Garden  City. 

Gove 1886 Gove. 

Graham 1880 Hill  City. 

Grant 1888 Ulysses. 

Gray 1887 Cimarron. 

Greeley 1887 Tribune. 

Hamilton 1886 Syracuse. 

Haskell 1887 Santa  Fe. 

Kearny 1888 Lakin. 

Kiowa 1886 Greensburg. 

Lane 1886 Dighton. 

Logan 1887 Russell  Springs. 

Meade 1885 Meade. 

Morton 1886 Richfield. 

Ness* 1880 Ness  City. 

Rawlins 1881 Atwood. 

Scott 1886 Scott. 

Seward 1886 Liberal. 

Sheridan 1880 Hoxie. 

Sherman 1886 Goodland. 

Stanton 1887 Johnson. 

Stevens 1886 Hugoton. 

Thomas 1885 Colby. 

Wichita 1886 Leoti. 

Wallace 1888 Sharon  Springs. 


Named  Sequosrah  until  1883. 

fint  orgMiixation  in  1873,  later  set  aside  as  fraudulent. 


-It 


INDEX 


Abilene,  158. 

Actual  Settlers'  Association,  69. 

Adams,  Franklin  G.,  223. 

Adams,  Zu,  223. 

Admission  of  Kansas,  100,  108. 

Agriculture,  taught  to  the  Indi- 
ans, 47,  141;  Territorial  days, 
142;  during  Civil  War,  142; 
1860  to  1880,  146;  1880  to 
1887,  147;  1887  to  1893,  147; 
1893  to  1913,  163;  basis  of 
prosperity,  169. 

Agriculture,  Board  of,  161. 

Agricultural  College,  142,  161, 
191,  193,  194. 

Agricultural  Society,  142,  161. 

Aid  from  the  East,  107,  121. 

Allerton,  Ellen  P.,  225. 

Alfalfa,  149,  150. 

Alliance,  Farmers',  160. 

Amendments  to  the  Constitu- 
tion, 138. 

Anderson,  John  A.,  222. 

Andreas'  History  of  Kansas,  225. 

Appendix,  215-241. 

Apple  Crop,  159. 

Aplington,  Kate  A.,  226. 

Army  of  the  North,  90. 

Arizona,  29. 

Arkansas  City,  129. 

Ash  Creek,  38. 

Atchison,  D.  R.,  74,  76. 

Atchison,  21,  43,  70,  166. 

Atchison,  Topeka  &  Santa  Fe, 
buUding  of,  176-178. 


Attorneys-General,  Territorial, 

228;  State,  231. 
Auditors,  Territorial,  227;  State, 

230. 
Baker  University,  197,  235. 
Balance  of  Power,  58;  table  of, 

237. 
Baptist  Missions,  217. 
Barton  County,  201. 
Barber,  murder  of,  86. 
Becknell,  journey  of,  31. 
Beet  Sugar  Factory,  151. 
Berryman,  Rev.  J.  C,  217. 
Black  Jack,  battle  of,  87. 
Blackmar,  F.  W.,  226. 
'•Bleeding  Kansas,"  93. 
Blue  Lodges,  66. 
Bluemont  College,  193. 
Board  of  Administration,  197. 
Boom,  127-129,  147. 
Board  of  Agriculture,  161. 
Bogus  Legislature,  76,  77,  79,  80, 

212. 
Boston,  71. 

Beecher,  Henry  Ward,  88. 
Bickerdyke,  Mary  A.,  223. 
Branson,  Jacob,  81. 
Brick,  168. 

Brewer,  David  J.,  222. 
Brown,  John,  86;  at  Pottawa^ 

tomie,  87,  98;  at  Osawatomie, 

88,  91;  site  of  battle-field,  204; 

monument,  206. 
Broom  Corn,  151. 
Buchanan,  President,  100. 


(243) 


244 


A   HISTORY   OF   KANSAS 


Buffalo,  9,  18,  21,  26,  33,  36,  37, 

49,  117,  124,  125. 
Butler  County,  118. 
Cabeza  de  Vaca,  10,  11,  37. 
Cache,  how  made,  38. 
California,  29, 173;  gold  seekers, 

41;  gold  fields,  42;  Road,  43, 

70;  emigration  to,  63. 
Capital,  State,  100. 
Capitals,  Territorial,  215. 
Capitol,  State,  131. 
Carruth,  William  Herbert,  226. 
Carson,  Kit,  41. 
Catholic,  priests,   16;   missions, 

50,  218. 
Cattle  Trade,  158. 
Census,  first  Territorial,  75. 
Cherokee  County,  165. 

Chief  Justices,  Territorial,  228; 

State,  232. 
Cibola,  11. 

Cimarron  River,  32,  33,  39. 
Cimarron  Crossing,  39. 
Civil   War,   111-114,    117,    130, 

131,  142,  163. 
Clark,  Esther  M.,  226. 
Clark,  William,  20. 
Cloud  County,  117. 
Coal,  163. 
Columbus,  9,  10, 
Coleman,  80. 

Colorado,  22,  29,  149,  151. 
Colleges,  list  of,  235. 
College  of  Emporia,  197. 
Colby,  162. 

Comanche  Indians,  25,  34. 
Commission,  Railroad,  180. 
Congressmen,  233,  234. 
Connelley,  William  Elsey,  226. 
Consolidated  Schools,  187. 


Constitution,  Topeka,  79,  80,  95, 
215;  Lecompton,  96,  215; 
Leavenworth,  97,  215;  Wyan- 
dotte, 99,  107,  215. 

Constitutions,  summary  of,  215. 

Corn,  155,  156. 

Coronado,  10-14,  49;  monument 
for,  206;  sword  of,  208. 

Cortez,  10,  11,  29. 

Cotton  Gin,  67. 

Council  Grove,  34,  73,  204. 

Counties  organized,  114,  123; 
lists  of,  238-241. 

County  High  School,  189. 

Cowboy,  157,  158. 

Crawford  County,  165. 

Crawford,  Samuel  J.,  118,  226. 

Crops  of  Kansas,  146,  147. 

Dairying,  156. 

Daughters  of  American  Revolu- 
tion, 203. 

Democratic  Party,  99. 

Denominational  Schools,  197, 
235. 

Denver,  Governor,  98. 

Dodge  City,  13,  162;  cattle  trade 
center,  158. 

Domestic  Science,  187. 

Don  Carlos,  Mrs.  Louisa  Cooke, 
226. 

Douglas  County,  80. 

Douglas,  Stephen  A.,  59. 

Dow,  80. 

Drouth,  67,  106,  119,  129,  142, 
147. 

Dugout,  103. 

Education,  183-199;  see  Schools; 

Eldridge,  86. 

Election,  first  Territorial,  73; 
second  Territorial,  75. 


INDEX 


245 


Elwood,  174. 

Emigrant  Aid  Company,  65,  66, 
86. 

Emporia,  191. 

English,  17. 

Exodus,  126. 

Experiment  Station,  161-162. 

Extension  Work,  197. 

Farmers'  Alliance,  160. 

Farmers'  Institutes,  162. 

Farmers'  Organizations,  160. 

Farmers*   Educational  and  Co- 
operative Union,  161. 

Farming  Implements,  143-146. 

Father  Padilla,  49,  50. 

Feterita,  151. 

Floods,  133. 

Foreign  Settlements,  178,  179. 

Fort  Dodge,  38,  54,  220. 

Fort  Hays,  54,  220. 

Fort  Hays  Kansas  Normal 
School,  193. 

Fort  Leavenworth,  51,  53,  219. 

Forts,  list  of,  219-221. 

Fort  Riley,  52,  54,  73,  76,  204, 
205,  219. 

Fort  Scott,  54,  165,  219. 

Forty-niners,  42. 

Fourth  of  July  Creek,  21. 

France,  16;  end  of  claims  in 
America,  18. 

Franklin,  33,  90. 

Fremont,  John  C,  41. 

Friends  University,  197. 

Friends  Missions,  50,  217. 

Funston,  Fred,  131. 

Fur  Traders,  48. 

Garden  City,  151,  162. 

Gardner,  43. 

Gas,  166,  169. 


Geary,  John  W.,  91,  92,  93,  95. 

Giles,  F.  W.,  225. 

Glass,  169. 

Gleed,  Charles,  225. 

Click,  Geo.  W.,  205. 

Gold  Seekers,  41-43. 

Good  Roads,  189. 

Goss,  Nathaniel  S.,  225. 

Governors,  Territorial,  227; 

State,  229. 
Graham,  Eflfie,  226. 
Grange,  160. 

Grasshopper  Invasion,  120,  127. 
Gray,  Alfred,  223. 
Great  American  Desert,  24,  25, 

29,  107,  123. 
Great  Bend,  13. 
Great  Salt  Lake,  42. 
Great  Seal  of  Kansas,  116. 
Gregg,  Josiah,  35. 
Greenwood  County,  118. 
Gypsum,  169. 
Hall  of  Fame,  204,  205. 
Hamelton,  98. 
Hand  Planter,  142. 
Harger,  Charles  M.,  226. 
Harris,  William  A.,  222. 
Harvey,  Henry,  218. 
Hays,  162. 

Highland  College,  50,  217. 
Hinton,  R.  J.,  225. 
History  of  Kansas,  201,  213. 
Historical  Society,  207-208. 
Homes  of  Kansas,  102. 
Homestead  Law,  119. 
Horner,  Hattie,  225. 
Horses,  used  on  Santa  Fe  Trail, 

33. 
Horticulture,  159. 
Howe,  E.  W.,  225,  226. 


246 


A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 


Hudson,  Mary  W.,  225. 

Hutchinson,  166,  167. 

Immigration,  65,  66,  89,  107, 
117,  119,  123,  130,  178,  179. 

Illinois,  66. 

Independence,  33,  34. 

Independence  Creek,  21. 

Indians,  9,  21,  57,  73,  135;  tribes 
of,  25;  and  traders,  32;  experi- 
ence with,  39;  possessed  Kan- 
sas,  46-54;   reservations,   47; 

•  taught  in  missions,  51;  re- 
moval of,  46-48;  raids,  112, 
117,  118;  as  farmers,  141. 

Indiana,  66. 

Indian  Territory,  48. 

Industries  of  Kansas,  141-170. 

Ingalls,  John  J.,  88,  204,  210,225. 

Inman,  Henry,  226. 

Institutions,  State,  235,  236. 

Insurance,  Superintendents  of, 
232. 

Iowa,  66,  89,  90. 

"Iron  Trail,"  177. 

Irrigation,  148,  149. 

Irving,  24. 

Irwin,  Rev.  S.  M.,  217. 

Jayhawkers,  98. 

Jefferson,  President,  18,  20. 

Jesuits,  16,  49. 

Johnson,  Mrs.  Elizabeth  A.,  202. 

Johnson,  Rev.  Thomas,  51. 

Johnson,  William,  217. 

Joliet,  16. 

Jones,  Sheriff,  80,  82,  85. 
Junction  City,  13. 
Kafir  Corn,  151. 
Kansas,  admission  of,  100,  108. 
Kansas  City,  40,  51,  67,  68,  69, 
113,  133,  163,  166,  173. 


Kansas  History,  in  the  making, 

213. 
Kansas  Spirit,  211-214. 
Kansas  Pacific  Railroad,  175. 
Kansas-Nebraska   Bill,    59,    64, 

65. 
Kansas  Territory,  map,  56; 

organization,  59. 
Kansas  To-day,  135,  137. 
Kanza  Indians,  25,  34,  46. 
Kaw   Indians,   same   aa   Kanza 

Indians. 
King,  Henry,  225. 
Kingman,  Samuel  A.,  222. 
La  Croix,  Father,  218. 
Land  Grants,  178. 
Lane,  James  H.,  79,  80,  88,  90, 

100. 
La  Salle,  16. 
Lawrence,  67,  69,  70,  80,  82,  85, 

90,  100,  166;  sacking  of,  86; 

defense  of,  92;  Quantrill  raid, 

112;  floods,  133,  135. 
Lawrence,  Amos  A.,  67. 
Lead  and  Zinc,  165. 
Leavenworth,  21,  43,  70,  166. 
Leavenworth    Constitution,   97. 
Lecompton,  70,  89,  90,  96,  97. 
Leedy,  Governor,  161. 
Legislature,  Free-state,  96. 
Legislature,   Bogus,  76,  77,  79, 

80;  second  Territorial,  95. 
Legislatures,  summary  of,  215. 
Length  of  school  term,  184. 
Lewelling,  Governor,  161. 
Lewis  and  Clark,  expedition  of, 

20-21,  25. 
Lieutenant-Governors,  229. 
Lincoln,  110. 


INDEX 


24'i 


Lindsborg,  179. 

Linn  County,  98,  114. 

Live  Stock,  156. 

Locomotive,  invention  of,  172; 
old  and  modern,  180. 

Long,  Major,  24. 

Louisiana,  naming  of,  16;  pur- 
chase of,  18,  46,  68;  explora- 
tion of,  20. 

Lykins,  Dr.  Johnson,  217. 

Manhattan,  70,  175,   193,   194. 

Manual  Training  Normal 
School,  192. 

Marais  des  Cygnes  Massacre, 
98,  206. 

Marion  County,  118. 

Manual  Training,  187,  188. 

Manufactures,  163. 

Markham,  Thomas  B.,  217. 

Marquette,  16. 

Marysville,  174. 

Mason,  Walt,  226. 

McCarter,  Margaret  Hill,  226. 

McCoy,  Rev.  Isaac,  50,  217. 

McCoy,  Joseph  G.,  225. 

McKeever,  W.  A.,  226. 

Meat  Packing,  163,  179. 

Meeker,  Jotham,  50,  217. 

Mexico,  17,  22,  29;  war  with,  41, 
63. 

Memorial  Hall,  2,  206. 

Memorials  of  Kansas,  201-209. 

Mendenhall,  Rev.  M.,  218. 

Mennonites,  155,  178. 

Methodist  Missions,  51,  217. 

MUler,  Sol,  102. 

Milling,  163,  179. 

Milo,  151. 

Mine  Creek,  114. 


Mineral  resources,  163. 

Minneola,  215. 

Mirage,  40. 

Missionaries,  48,  49,  50,  51. 

Missions,  54, 141 ;  established,  50, 

51;  list  of,  217-218. 
Missouri  Compromise,  58,  59. 
Missouri  River  closed  to  free- 
state  immigration,  89. 
Montgomery,  James,  98. 
Monuments,  205-207. 
Moody,  Joel,  225. 
Morgan,  Wm.  Y.,  226. 
Mormons,  42,  53. 
Mormon  Trail,  43. 
Mortgages,  129. 
Mounds,  114. 
Mount  Oread,  67,  195. 
Mutual  Benefit  Association,  160. 
Munger,  Mrs.  Dell  H.,  226. 
Narvaez,  10. 
National  Government,  protected 

traders,  33;  sent  out  Fremont, 

41;    removal    policy    of,    46; 

established  Fort  Leavenworth, 

53. 
Nebraska,  25,  43,  89,  90,  151. 
Neosho  Valley,  34. 
,  New  England  Emigrant  Aid 

Company,  first  party,   66; 

second  party,  67;  third  and 

fourth  parties,  69. 
New  Mexico,  11,  21,  29,  40. 
New  Spain,  10,  11,  14. 
Nevada,  29. 

Nichols,  Mrs.  C.  I.  H.,  223. 
Nineteenth  Kansas,  118. 
Normal  Schools,  190,  191,  192, 

193,  235. 
Northern  Route  to  Kansas,  89. 


248 


A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 


Officers,  Territorial,  227,  228; 
State,  229-234. 

"Old  Mill,"  143. 

Ohio,  66. 

Oil,  166. 

Oklahoma,  25,  48,  60,  166;  open- 
ing of,  129. 

Oregon  Trail,  43. 

Oregon,  emigrants  to,  41. 

Organization  of  Kansas  Terri- 
tory, 57-60. 

Osage  County,  165. 

Osage  Indians,  21,  25,  34,  46, 
217. 

Osawatomie,  87;  pillaged,  88; 
burned,  91. 

Ottawa  University,  50,  197. 

Oxen,  33. 

Pack  Mules,  31. 

Padilla,  Father,  49,  50. 

Padoucas,  26. 

Panic  of  1893,  130,  153. 

Patrons  of  Husbandry,  159. 

Pawnee,  town  of,  76. 

Pawnee  Capitol,  52,  76,  205. 

Pawnee  Fork,  38. 

Pawnee  Indians,  14,  21,  34,  38, 
202. 

Pawnee  Rock,  37,  201,  202. 

Peffer,  William  A.,  225. 

Peck,  George  R.,  225. 

Pennsylvania,  66. 

People's  Party,  161. 

Peery,  Rev.  E.  T.,  217. 

Phillips,  William  A.,  225. 

Pierce,  President,  63. 

Pike's  Peak,  23. 

Pike,  Zebulon  Montgomery,  21- 
23,  25,  29,  30,  202,  203. 

Pioneer  life,  103-109,  123,  124, 
125. 


Pioneer  Schools,  186. 
Plumb,  Preston  B.,  222. 
Pony  Express,  173. 
Pomeroy,  Samuel  C,  67;  made 

senator,  100. 
Popular  Sovereignty,  59,  74. 
Population  of  Kansas,  1854,  54; 

1855,  75;  1859, 107;  1865,  114. 
Populist  Party,  161. 
Portland  Cement,  169. 
Pottawatomie  Massacre,  87,  98. 
Prentis,  Noble  L.,  224,  225. 
Presbyterian  Missions,  50,  217. 
Price  Raid,  113. 
Printers,  State,  232. 
Prohibition  Amendment,  138, 

213. 
Public  Utilities   Commission, 

180. 
Quantrill  Raid,  112;  loss  from, 

113;  monument,  207. 
Quivira,  poem,  8;  land  of,  11, 12, 

13,  14;  Indians,  26,  50. 
Railroads,    127,    147,    172-181; 

first    one    in     Kansas,     174; 

Kansas    advertised    by,    178; 

relation    to    industries,    179; 

regulation    of,    180;    mileage, 

180. 
Railroad  Commission,  180. 
Redpath,  James,  225. 
Realf,  Richard,  225. 
Reeder,  Andrew  H.,    73,  76,  79, 

88. 
Regiments   of   Kansas   soldiers, 

118,  130. 
Reign  of  Violence,  85-93. 
Regulation  of  railroads,  180. 
Removal  Policy,  50. 
Republic  County,  21,  117,  202. 
Republican  Party,  99. 


INDEX 


249 


Richardson,  Albert  D.,  225. 

"Rifle  Christians,"  88. 

Robinson,  Dr.  Charles,  67,  79, 
80,  183,  225;  home  burned, 
86;  held  prisoner,  89;  first  gov- 
ernor, 100. 

Robinson,  Mrs.  Sara  T.  D.,  223, 
225. 

Ross,  Edmund  G.,  223. 

Round  Mound,  40. 

Rural   Schools,   pioneer,    186; 
modern,  187. 

Sacramento,  42. 

Salt  Lake,  173,  174. 

Salt  Lake  Trail,  70. 

Salt,  167. 

San  Francisco,  173,  174. 

Santa  Fe  Trail,  29-41,  172,177; 
map  of,  28;  length  of,  34,  43; 
marking  of,  203. 

Santa  Fe,  city,  29,  30,  41,  173. 

Scott,  Charles  F.,  225. 

Schoenmaker,  Rev.,  218. 

Schools,  established  by  missions, 
50;  Territorial,  183;  first  in 
Lawrence,  183;  subscription, 
183;  length  of  term,  184; 
during  Civil  War,  184;  pioneer 
schools,  186;  rural,  187;  con- 
solidated, 187;  high  schools, 
189;  State,  190-198,  235;  for 
blind,  195;  for  deaf,  195;  of 
mines,  195;  denominational, 
197,  235. 

Seal  of  State,  116. 

Secretaries,  Territorial,  227; 
State,  230. 

Senate,  58. 

Senators,  United  States,  233. 

Seven  Cities  of  Cibola,  11. 

Shannon.  Wilson.  77,  82.  87,  91. 


Shawnee  Indians,  51. 

Shawnee  Mission,  51;  as  capi- 
tal, 76. 

Sheldon,  Charles  M.,  225,  226. 

Simmerwell,  Rev.  Robert,  217. 

Slaves,  63,  64,  74. 

Slavery  in  United  States,  57. 

Smith,  F.  Dumont,  226. 

Snow,  Francis  Huntington,  222. 

Sod  Corn,  143. 

Sod  House,  106. 

Sod  Schoolhouse,  184. 

Soldiers,  41,  48,  206;  furnished 
by  Kansas,  111. 

Song  of  the  Kansas  Emigrant, 
62. 

Sorghum  Crops,  148,  151. 

Southern  Aid,  89. 

Southeastern  Kansas,  97. 

Southwestern  University,  197. 

Spain,  10,  14,  17,  18. 

Spanish-American  War,  130. 

Speer,  John,  225. 

Spring,  L.  W.,  225. 

Squatter  Sovereignty,  59. 

Stage  Lines,  172,  173. 

State  Fair,  Leavenworth,  142. 

Steam  Plow,  146. 

Steele,  James  W.,  225. 

Stockyards,  154. 

Stringfellow,  B.  F.,  76. 

St.  John,  Governor,  138. 

St.  Joseph,  43,  173,  174. 

St.  Mary's  College,  50. 

Stone,  building,  163;  quarry, 
168. 

Sugar  Beets,  151. 

Superintendents  of  Public  In- 
struction, Territorial,  228; 
State,  231. 


250 


A   HISTORY  OF   KANSAS 


Supplies  Taken  by  Traders,  33. 

Swedish  Settlements,  179. 

Sword,  old  Spanish,  208. 

Tecumseh,  90. 

Telegraph,  174. 

Territory,  government  of,  73. 

Territorial  Officers,  227,  228. 

Texas,  18,  23,  158. 

Thayer,  Eli,  65,  66. 

The  Caches,  38. 

The  Three  R's,  186. 

The  "2700,"  93,  94. 

Tomlinson,  W.  P.,  225. 

Topeka,  70,  90,  100,  133,  135, 

166. 
Topeka    Constitution,    79,    95, 

215. 
Topeka  Movement,  215. 
Trading  Posts,  49,  54. 
Trading  Post  Ford,  114. 
Trails,  Santa  Fe,  29-41;  Oregon, 

43;  California,  43;   Mormon, 

43;   Salt  Lake,  70. 
Trail  Markers,  203,  204. 
Trappers,  126. 
Traveling  Libraries,  198. 
Treasurers,  Territorial,  228; 

State,  230. 
Turk,  12. 
Twentieth  to  Twenty-third 

Kansas,  130. 
Underflow,  149. 
Union  Pacific  Railroad,  157, 174, 

175,  176,  178,  206. 
University  of  Kansas,  67,  191, 

195,  196. 


Utah,  29. 

Van  Quickenborn,  Father,  218. 
Wagons,  used  on  Trail,  31,  39. 
Wakarusa  War,  80-82. 
Walker,  Governor,  arrival  of,  95; 

resigned,  98. 
War,   Civil,   108,   111-115,  130, 

131;  French  and  Indian,  17; 

Revolutionary,    17;    Spanish- 
American,  130. 
Ware,  Eugene  F.,  200,  224,  226. 
Washburn  College,  197. 
Wellhouse,  Frederick,  223. 
Wellington,  166. 
Western  Kansas,  148,  149,  178. 
Westport,  33,  43,  80,  113. 
Wheat,  152,  153,  155. 
White,  William  Allen,  226. 
Wichita,  166. 

Wilder,  Daniel  W.,  224,  225. 
Windmill,  at  Lawrence,  143; 

irrigation,  148. 
Winter  of  1855-'56,  85. 
Woman's  Kansas  Day  Club,  201. 
Woman's  Relief  Corps,  204. 
Woman  Suffrage,  138. 
Wood,  S.  N.,  88. 
Woodson,    Daniel,    77;    opened 

Kansas  to  invaders,  91. 
Woodward,  Brinton  W.,  225. 
Writers,  Kansas,  225,  226. 
Wyandotte  Constitution,  99, 

100,  107,  225. 


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